KPGreen Lantern:Brightest Day, Darkest Night
by ReedStoppable
Summary: Kim PossibleGreen Lantern fusion. With the legendary Green Lantern Corps. destroyed, one person is left to bear the final power ring. These are the ongoing adventures of Ron Stoppable, the last Green Lantern.
1. With This Ring Pt I

_"The cosmos through,_

_in every part,_

_one thing endures:_

_a loving heart._

_Against the knaves_

_who'd quell this song_

_Green Lanterns stand,_

_to right the wrong!"_

Kim Possible/Green Lantern: In Brightest Day and Darkest Night

Chapter One

The planet Oa

The Center of the Universe.

Hal Jordan walked across the ruins of what used to be one of the most beautiful planets in the universe. Moments ago, he had thrown himself into the central power battery, which was the main source of all the Green Lanterns powers. Where he entered Hal Jordan, he had emerged as Parallax.

Walking past the bodies of fallen members of the Green Lantern Corps, Parallax's thoughts drifted to the events that had unfolded before him.

Denied the right to resurrect his destroyed hometown of Coast City, he had gone on a murderous rampage all the way to Oa. The guardians had sent some of their best warriors after him, all of them failing. None of them could match the will power, and anger of the greatest Green Lantern. Even Jordan's oldest foe Sinestro, and friend Kilowog had failed.

As he prepared to take his leave something caught Hal's eye. Looking down he saw his own power ring lying in the dirt. With a growl Hal brought his heel down upon the ring, smashing it into pieces. Satisfied with the destruction, Hal took off to the sky, surrounded in glowing green energy.

As he departed a small blue skinned figure emerged from a pile of similarly blue skinned bodies.

The last surviving guardian of the universe, Ganthet, stood amongst the bodies of his fellow guardians.

"I grieve for you brothers. Though we disagreed bitterly more often than not. I fear, however, there is little time for eulogies." Ganthet said sadly. "You gave me the last of your strength, and I know what must be done."

Ganthet bent down and picked up the pieces of the power ring Hal Jordan had smashed moments before.

"Our greatest champion, yet we did not stand by him in his need", he said softly, remembering Hal Jordan. "Were we then the architects of our own destruction my brothers?"

"Even this is abandoned, the symbol of all our champion was. All that we were." Ganthet continued, squeezing the pieces of the ring in his small hands, causing them to compact and glow with green energy until a new ring had formed. "It must become a symbol...once again."

Satisfied with the completion of the final Green Lantern ring, Ganthet took to the sky to the direction of Earth.

---

The Planet Earth

Middleton, MI

Ron Stoppable slid quietly out of the side door of the Middleton Banquet Center. He placed a rock at the bottom of the door to keep it from latching behind him, and leaned against the railing.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath of the cool night air. He loosened his necktie, and wiped his brow with the back of his sleeve.

"Amazing how hot one can get while making a fool out of one's self", Ron said to himself.

The cool May night happened to be Middleton's prom dance. Ron had spent the last hour proving to his date, Kim Possible, that he was a "bon diggity dancer". He had finally snuck away during a song that Kim and the other senior girls had dedicated to each other.

Ron was having a good time, and didn't want any emotional senior year nonsense to interfere, though he suspected it would at some point.

He opened his eyes and looked up towards the clear night sky. A green twinkling caught his eye, and he stood up straight and squinted, trying to get a better view.

"Falling star or something", Ron muttered, "maybe I should make a wish."

As Ron considered what to wish for, he noticed something else about the green comet.

"Holy...", he said, his eyes widening, "It's coming right at me!"

Startled, Ron jumped over the railing and off the side of the small concrete porch that led to the door. As his feet hit the ground on the other side, he saw the bright green flash from where he was standing moments before.

Ron crept around to the side of the porch to the front and looked at the base of the stairs. Where the green comet had hit, stood a short blue man in a red robe.

Ron's eyes widened as he realized what he was looking at.

"Little blue alien dude, what's up?"

Ganthet studied Ron for a moment before he spoke.

"Kim Possible."

"Go figure." Ron smiled, "She's inside, I'll go get her for you"

"No." Ganthet stated simply. "You will have to do."

Ganthet took Ron's hand in his and placed a small green object in it. Ron looked down at what he had been given. In his hand was a green ring, with an emerald lantern on the end of it.

"What's this? What am I supposed to do with this?"

"What you must." Ganthet said.

"What?" Ron asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.

Before he could get an answer though, Ganthet disappeared in a flash of green light.

Ron stood there for a moment, as his mind tried to process what had just happened.

He looked down at the ring before deciding to put it on.

"At least he didn't ask me to marry him" Ron chuckled as he slid the ring on his right middle finger.

Ron gasped at the feeling that suddenly overcame him. It was as if he could feel pure energy rushing over, and through him. He then noticed the green aura around him, and his sudden change in clothes.

Gone were Ron's khakis and blue collared shirt and tie. In their place was a form fitting green and black costume. The green started at his shoulders and went all the way down to his waist, covering the majority of his torso. His boots were green and his gloves white. In the middle of his chest was the same symbol that was on the end of his ring. A green lantern. A green mask covered Ron's eyes as well.

"Whoa" Ron gasped, taking in his new appearance.

"What are you, little ring?" he said, looking down at this middle finger. "I've got to tell Kim about this."

Ron started back towards the door before he stopped suddenly.

"I can't go in there looking like this though."

Ron wished he had his old clothes back, and as he thought about them, they suddenly reappeared, replacing the mysterious costume.

"Way badical" he smiled as he snuck back into the gymnasium.

---

Kim Possible stood in front of the punch table, scanning the crowd in the banquet center for any sign of her date. She had seen him slink off when they had started to play the senior girls song, but she had lost track of him after that.

"Hey KP."

Kim jumped slightly and turned around to face Ron, who had somehow gotten behind her.

"Where did you take off to?" Kim asked raising an eyebrow at Ron.

"Stepped outside for some air, but that's not important right now. You'll never guess..."

"It's going to have to wait Ron, Wade just beeped in. Duff Killigan is attacking the Lowerton Golf Dome, if we leave now and make it quick, we can make it back for the end of the dance and the party at Tara's"

"But Kim" Ron started again holding out his right hand.

"Later Ron" Kim said, grabbing Ron's extended hand. "Our ride's should be here by now, lets hit it."

---

The ride to Lowerton was about ten minutes by car. However the ride was much shorter if you went as the crow flies, with a prototype rocket glider strapped to your back.

"I can't believe the nerve of Killigan. Attacking someplace on the night of our senior homecoming!" Kim complained into the microphone built into her helmet.

"Yea, what a jerk" Ron's voice came into her ear.

Kim glanced at Ron out of the corner of her eye. Though he had certainly got better at using the gadgets Wade had been developing over the years, he was still a little shaky at times. Tonight however, he glided along calmly, not making any comments except in response to Kim's own.

"Are you alright Ron?"

"Never better KP" he responded, giving her a wink.

Kim rolled her eyes and turned back to the landscape below them. The Lowerton Golf Dome had been built over the summer to accommodate golfers in the winter months. The large white roofed dome included a driving range, a nine hole par three course, a putt-putt course, and of course a lavishly stocked Pro Shop.

"Look there", Ron said pointing at the very top of the dome.

Kim followed Ron's finger, and saw what he was indicating. A large hold had been torn in the roof, and parked next to it was what appeared to be a golf cart with a helicopter rotor stemming from the roof.

Kim and Ron glided down and landed softly next to the opening.

"Nice wheels." Ron commented as he looked over the golf cart.

"Focus Ron? We need to make this quick." Kim said as she slapped Ron on the arm.

"Right, dance...party, gotcha." Ron replied with a mock salute. "So what's the plan?"

"Find Duff, hit him hard, and get out of here." Kim said as she pulled a pair of night vision binoculars from her belt and peered through the opening into the golf dome. "And there he is, over by the driving range."

Kim put the binoculars back into her belt, and dove down through the opening, gliding towards Duff's location. Ron watched her path for a moment, and then dove in after her.

Kim landed softly behind Killigan, and unhooked her backpack. She watched Killigan, who appeared to be replacing all the buckets of driving range balls, with his own brand of balls. Kim looked above him, watching Ron float down, and waited for her opening.

Ron dropped down smoothly enough, but purposefully loud. Killigan immediately stopped what he was doing, and turned his attention to Ron.

"Alright Doof, playtimes over." Ron stated confidently.

"I beg to differ laddie, I say it's just beginning" Killigan replied, as he pulled three metal golf tee's from his bag, and threw them at Ron.

Ron dove to his left, avoiding the tee's that went whizzing past, sticking into the wall behind him. As Ron dove, Kim made her move from the shadows. She ran up behind Killigan, grabbing the shoulder straps of his golf bag. She then vaulted over top of him, and tossed him over her head as she landed.

Killigan hit the wall hard, sending the golf clubs from his bag scattering.

"Aye, guess I should've seen that coming eh?" he moaned rubbing the back of his head. "Then again, you should probably have seen this coming to lass."

Killigan reached into his belt and withdrew a silver ball marker out and pressed the center of it. Kim's eyes widened as she heard all the balls in the range buckets began beeping next to her. She had barely enough time to turn with the blast, as the range buckets exploded.

"Kim!" Ron cried over the blast, as he ran to where his partner had been knocked.

Ron reached Kim, and rolled her over on to her back. She had a large gash on her forehead and several cuts on the rest of her body, but for the most part she was in tact.

"Kim? Are you okay?"

"Never better. Don't think I'll be up for much more dancing though" she replied with a half smile, half wince.

Ron smiled softly, and then turned his attention to Killigan. He gasped when he saw Killigan lining up another explosive golf ball, ready to blast away with his pitching wedge.

"Fore!" Killigan yelled as he swatted at the ball, sending it high into the air.

"Nice shot idiot, but we're down here" Ron said as he stood ready to take Killigan down.

"I wasn't aiming for you, and Duff Killigan never misses" Killigan responded, pointing above Ron.

Ron turned his eyes upwards just in time to see Killigan's golf ball striking a large metal sign indicating the location of the driving range. The ball exploded, sending jagged pieces of metal crashing down upon Ron and Kim.

"Ha!" Killigan laughed, surveying his victory, while he danced a brief victory dance.

"Wait till I tell Dr. Drakken that I finally...what?" Killigan stopped his dance and stared at the pile of rubble. Underneath the metal appeared to be glowing green.

"What in the name of St. Andrews fairways?" Killigan muttered.

Then, before he could react, the green energy pulsed outwards, revealing a green bubble surrounding Ron and Kim. The energy pulse sent the metal debris flying in every direction. A smaller piece came at Killigan, and before he could react, smacked him in the forehead, knocking him unconscious.

Ron stood and looked at Killigan, then down to his right hand. The emerald ring he had worn outside of his glove still glowed with the green energy that had formed the bubble.

"I just thought about it...and it was there." He muttered to himself.

"Ron?" Kim's voice snapped Ron out his daze. "What was that?"

"I don't know KP. But it totally rocked."

Ron turned to Kim and grinned slightly, then bent over to help her to her feet.

"Gonna be alright? Or should we wait for an ambulance to get you checked out?"

"I'll be fine, lets just get back and cleaned up for the party, ok?" Kim said, wiping a bit of blood from her lip.

"Sounds good to me, lets get going. I'll drive" Ron smiled as he wrapped his arm around Kim's waist and activated his jet pack, taking them back towards the opening in the roof.

"Ron?"

"Yea?"

"When did your eyes become green?"

---

Duff Killigan grumbled to himself as the police led him out of the Golf Dome. Being beaten by Kim Possible was one thing, but to have taken her down and be bested by the sidekick was a whole new level of shame.

"Green bubble, what is that all about anyway", he groaned as a police officer led him into the back of the paddy wagon.

"Excuse me, Mr. Killigan." A man wearing a plain black suit spoke as he approached the villain. "Did you say something about a green bubble?"

"Aye lad. Plasma or some nonsense."

"I see" The man studied Killigan for a moment before reaching into his suit coat and pulling out his wallet.

"Agent Saunderson, FBI, I'll take him from here officer", he said holding out his FBI identification card.

The officer glanced at the wallet and shrugged, giving Killigan a shove towards Saunderson.

"An' what does th' FBI want with me?" Killigan asked as Saunderson led him to his car.

"Mr. Killigan, you may have just provided us with a vital clue to a side project some of us at the Bureau have taken an interest in."

---

Kim sat wide-eyed on the edge of a bed in a spare room at Tara's house. Ron was finishing telling her the most ridiculous story she had ever heard; yet she had to believe him.

"And then he gave me this, and told me to do what I had to with it" Ron finished, holding out his right hand to show Kim the ring.

"A lantern." Kim stated looking at the ring. "It's so beautiful, I've never seen a material like it before.

"I know, but it gets better." Ron grinned like an idiot. "Check this out."

With a mere thought, Ron's mission clothes were gone, replaced with the strange uniform from the first time he put the ring on.

"It comes with its own costume", Ron said twirling around for Kim to get a good view.

Kim stared at Ron for a moment, not truly believing what she saw, trying to make some sense out of the whole situation. As she stared at the emblem on Ron's chest, realization struck her.

'Of course! I know that symbol, it's a green lantern."

"Well thanks for that captain obvious" Ron said shaking his head.

"As in THE Green Lantern, dummy, the superhero."

Kim sighed at the confused look Ron gave her. She was amazed at how dense he could be sometimes. She reached into her pocket and pulled out her Kimmunicator.

"Wade, can you bring me up a brief bit of history on the superhero Green Lantern?" she asked the boy genius.

"Sure Kim, I'll have it before you can say...done!" Wade smiled, as his image was replaced with a video.

Kim motioned for Ron to sit next to her on the bed, and he did so leaning in close so he could get a view of the video that was being played.

The video was showing a series of news clips and action photographs of some men wearing a costume exactly like Ron's. Wade spoke over the video giving them a few facts.

"The Green Lantern Corps. is an intergalactic peace keeping force. Members of the Corps. are given power rings, which from what I hear, are limited only by the bearers will power and imagination. The three guys I'm showing you are the Green Lanterns that have protected earth over the years."

An image of an older looking man appeared on the screen. He wore the same suit as Ron, but had brown curly hair, which was white around his ears.

"This is probably the most recognized Green Lantern." Wade continued. "As with most of the big superheroes his identity is secret. What is known about him is pretty impressive. A list of heroics and accolades to long to list, and he was a member of several Justice League incarnations. His base of operations seemed to be Coast City for a long period of time, and he hasn't been seen since the city was destroyed two weeks ago."

Wade took a deep breath after rattling off the information Kim had requested. Kim smiled as Ron sat on the bed with a dumbfounded look on his face, staring down at the ring.

"Thanks Wade, as usual you rock." Kim said into her Kimmunicator.

"I know." Wade smiled "But if you don't mind me asking, why the GL history lesson?"

"Well, I think there might be a new Green Lantern in town Wade." Kim smiled as she turned the Kimmunicator towards Ron.

"No way..." Wade whispered, his eyes wide and jaw gaping.

Ron finally looked up from his ring, and turned to Wade and Kim. A grin slowly spread across his face as he stood up, the ring glowing bright green.

"Oh yes. Way badical."

To be continued...

A/N...Green Lantern and related characters are property of DC Comics; Kim Possible and related characters are property of Disney.

Hope everyone enjoys this, more to come soon. Thanks for reading...be kind review.

-R


	2. With This Ring Pt II

Chapter Two

The morning breeze whipped through Ron's hair as he zoomed over Middleton. What once had only been possible with a jet pack or gilder was now just a thought away. Ron was flying, and he was loving every minute of it.

"Good morning Middleton!" Ron shouted as he swooped down through a crowded street, rustling papers and causing quite a breeze.

Onlookers watched as the streak of green zoomed up from the street, did a loop, and continued on in the opposite direction.

Ron slowed down as he glided over the central business district. The streets were usually fairly deserted on a Saturday, save the occasional businessman trying to get a little work done. This morning however there seemed to be quite a crowd gathered.

"Well what have we here" Ron said to himself as he came to a stop far above the crowd. A pair of green binoculars appeared in Ron's hand, and he brought them up to his face.

Down below some sort of robbery had taken a turn for the worse. A man in a ski mask held a woman by the back of her neck, gun pressed tightly to her temple. The man was shouting something that Ron couldn't hear, and the woman was sobbing and trembling uncontrollably.

"Hero time" Ron declared as his binoculars vanished, and he descended down to the crowd.

"Everybody just back off, or this lady's brains go all over the sidewalk!" the masked man was shouting. The crowd slowly began to back up, several of the people putting their hands up in the air.

"Quicker! I'm serious I'll...what the hell?"

The masked man looked at his gun, pulling it away from the woman's head. In the end of the barrel was a bright green cork, and a similarly green padlock held the trigger to the front of the trigger guard.

The man was even more surprised when a giant green hand whisked his hostage away from him. The crowd gasped and the gunman's eyes widened as the Green Lantern slowly landed a few feet in front of him.

The man took one good look at Ron in the Green Lantern costume, and took off running in the opposite direction. He didn't get far however, as his legs were suddenly wrapped up in green rope. The man hit the ground with a thud, as Green Lantern dusted off his hands.

"Looks like that wraps this up. Heh." Green Lantern chuckled to himself.

He turned to take off, when he the crowd suddenly closed in on him. The woman whose life he saved latched herself onto him.

"Thank you Mr. Lantern...thank you. I have no idea...oh god...thank you", the woman sobbed into Lantern's shoulder.

"Um...all in a days work ma'am," Lantern said as he shifted uncomfortably.

"Lantern! What are you doing here in Middleton?" Someone from the crowd called out.

"Oh, just passing through" Lantern responded as he finally separated himself from the woman.

"You're here to have a "team up" with Kim Possible aren't you?" A kid around Ron's age asked giving Lantern a nudge in the arm and a wink.

Lantern's eyes widened at the mention of Kim's name.

"Oh crap," he muttered. "Does anyone have the time?"

"It's a half past ten." The kid said with a smile. "Late for your team up?"

"You have no idea." Lantern said as he took off from the center of the crowd. The force of his departure sent several people off balance.

"I thought he was older." Someone commented as they watched the green streak disappear over the building line.

---

Ron sprinted up the front walk of the Possible household. He was supposed to be here and ready at 9:30 to leave for Wild Wally's Wonderful World of Wonder. A lot of the seniors had decided to spend the day after prom at the amusement park. Ron hoped they had waited for him.

Ron knocked on the front door and waited impatiently for an answer. The door swung open after a few seconds, and one look at Mrs. Possible's face answered Ron's question.

"Aw man..." Ron trailed off as he dropped his head.

"They waited as long as they could Ronald. Where were you?" Mrs. Possible asked.

"I...uh." Ron stammered as he decided if he should tell anyone about his new alter ego. He decided against it, and went with a lame lie instead.

"I overslept, and then I had some errands to run."

Definitely lame, Ron thought.

"Kim's way ticked isn't she?"

"She was pretty upset when they left. You know how she is with these big senior things." Mrs. Possible replied.

"Yea, tell me about it." Ron sighed. "This is going to take some major apologizing."

Mrs. Possible smiled and patted Ron on the shoulder.

"I'm sure she'll find it in her heart to forgive you."

"I hope so Mrs. Doctor P." Ron returned the smile. "I'll get out of your hair though, I'll see you later."

"Bye Ron" Mrs. Possible called as she watched the saddened teen walk away.

Ron walked slowly down the street with his hands stuffed in his pockets.

Well this is just great, Ron thought. Kim is going to be so mad at me. And on top of that I've got a whole Saturday with no friends around.

Ron stopped and pulled his right hand out of his pocket and stared at the shiny green ring on his middle finger.

"Then again...this might not be that bad of a day at all."

---

Kim sighed as she stared out the passenger window of Monique's flame red Mazda RSX-S. She had been looking forward to this day for so long, and Ron had missed it. She unconsciously clenched and unclenched her fist. She couldn't decide whether to be sad or angry.

"Easy there girl" Monique spoke up from the drivers seat. "I'm sure Ron had a perfectly good reason for not being there."

"He had better." Kim stated flatly. "He knew how much I was looking forward to this."

"Maybe he's just hung over" Kevin, Monique's date, spoke up from the backseat.

"No Kevin, you're the only one who thought he was cool enough to drink eighteen beers the night before going to an amusement park." Monique said rolling her eyes.

"Yea, that was cool." Kevin chuckled before closing his eyes, and laying his head back in the seat.

Kim sighed again and turned her gaze back out the window. It was going to be a long one.

---

The corner office of William Harrington was small and uninviting. No awards littered the walls, nor family pictures the desk. The office contained a desk, a chair and a window with the blinds drawn. It sat on the fifth floor of a government building in Washington D.C.

Harrington interlaced his fingers and leaned back in his chair. He looked over a spread of pictures on his desk. Satellite scans, crime scene photographs, and candid shots made up the lot.

"So what do you think?" Agent Saunderson asked from his standing position in front of the desk.

Harrington was silent for a moment before he answered the younger man.

"Killigan is sure the energy field was green?"

"Positive, sir. Combined with the green meteor, and the given location, I think we know what we are dealing with here."

"Indeed. I want that ring." Harrington stated. "Call in Major Force. Bring him up to speed. And monitor any reports of Green Lantern activity."

"Major Force sir?" Saunderson gulped. "Are you sure?"

"Positive. Oh, and Saunderson?"

"Yes, sir?"

"See that Mr. Killigan is justly rewarded for his cooperation."

A faint smile played across Saunderson's lips as he nodded in understanding.

Harrington watched as Saunderson exited to the hallway where Duff Killigan was waiting. Harrington continued to stare at the photographs, lost in thought, oblivious to the two muffled gunshots from outside his door.

---

Ron sat at the counter in the small diner and finished the last of his "house special" cheeseburger. He sighed, dabbing his mouth with his napkin. He had taken the waitresses challenge that no one had ever finished the burger before.

"Hey Darlene, looks like I eat for free." Ron stated proudly, before noticing no one in the diner was paying one bit of attention to him.

He followed the gaze of everyone in the diner, to the small television mounted to the wall above the jukebox. He smiled to himself when he realized what everyone was so transfixed with.

"That was the scene about an hour ago, when the hero Green Lantern saved several children from a four alarm fire that raged through Haylett's Orphanage this afternoon." The newscaster was saying, standing in front of several fire trucks.

"This is the third reported act of heroism by the Green Lantern today, all spread out over the Midwest." The reporter continued. "Apparently the Lantern has decided to make a return to the hero community after the tragedy of Coast City."

A middle-aged fireman, one who Ron recognized from the events of earlier, joined the reporter onscreen. Ron turned his attention away from the television to finish his soda, the report still audible.

"I think it was a new guy, looked younger, different hair color." The fireman was saying. "New or not though, he's a hero in my book."

Ron was overcome by the pride that washed over him upon hearing the fireman's praise. He had never actually been praised as a hero before, especially by someone like a fireman, a profession Ron truly admired.

Ron pulled out his wallet, and placed a ten-dollar bill on the counter next to his plate. The amount was more then enough for the burger, and provided a generous tip for Darlene.

With everyone still glued to the television set, Ron slinked out the front door and into the side alleyway. In a flash of green light, Ron Stoppable was gone, in his place stood the Green Lantern, who immediately took skyward.

"So I'm a hero now", Lantern thought to himself as he soared through the clouds. "No one knows Ron Stoppable from the man on the street. But Green Lantern...people know him."

"I think I'm going to like this" Green Lantern smiled to himself, as he banked East. "I think I'll take in the coast today."

---

In spite of herself, Kim Possible had to smile. She was standing on line for what was supposedly the world's tallest roller coaster. She honestly couldn't remember the last time she had moved forward.

The only thing keeping her sane was the small radio that Kevin had brought along in his book bag. And having heard the news brief about Green Lantern, she felt herself happy for Ron. Those feelings coming despite the fact she felt like strangling her.

"So the Green Lantern is running around Michigan now?" Kevin asked, scratching the back of his head. "I thought you had this market cornered Kim."

Kim was silent for a moment as she pondered how to answer Kevin's question. Monique however, beat her to the punch.

"You know these hero types aren't that territorial. Besides, maybe Kim and GL can hook up. Wouldn't that be something?"

"Yea...sure would..." Kim's voice trailed off, her anger at Ron returning slightly as the radio played a sound bite the Lantern had given them.

"I was just in the right place at the right time." Lantern was saying. "Luckily my day was free."

"Kim?" Monique's voice interrupted her thoughts. "Are you grinding your teeth, because I can hear it over here."

---

Green Lantern coughed as he took a deep breath of air. He had planned on taking in the coast, but apparently Gotham City was not the place to take in the coast. He had been in town for about an hour, and had already thwarted three mugging attempts, a rape attempt, and a carjacking.

"So much for taking a breath of fresh air." Green Lantern wheezed. "I don't think there is such a thing as fresh air in this dump. And why is it so dark here, it's not even nighttime!"

"Some would say it never gets light around here." A gravely voice from behind GL said.

Lantern spun around, ring aglow with energy to face the voice. He peered around the shadowy rooftop, finding no one there but himself.

Just before Lantern wrote the voice off to a long day, he noticed a movement in the shadows. Where moments before there was nothing, two figures materialized, seemingly from nothing.

The first was a couple of years older then Ron. His posture was upright and strong, his muscular body covered by a form fitting black suit, with a midnight blue V design across the chest. His medium length black hair played in the wind, while a black domino mask hid his eyes.

The second figure was a few inches shorter and looked to be a couple years younger then Ron. His costume was brighter, a red tunic covered his chest with a gold "R" on the left breast, and long green pants ran into black boots. He wore a black cape with yellow lining which flapped easily in the breeze. A similar domino mask hid his eyes.

Ron's eyes widened behind his own mask as he recognized the two figures before him.

"Holy crap" he said. "Batman and Robin!"

The man in black grunted in annoyance, as a slight smile spread across Robin's face.

"That's Nightwing." Robin said. "One out of two isn't bad though."

"Opps, sorry dude." Green Lantern offered. "I'm Green Lantern."

"I can see that" Nightwing said, his voice a little less gruff. "What brings you to Gotham City, and what happened to the man who wore that uniform before you?"

"Well I was just passing through, and I assume you mean the guy from Coast City?"

Nightwing nodded.

"I don't know, I haven't met him yet."

Nightwing and Robin looked at each other before Robin posed another question.

"Surely the guardians mentioned something of him when they gave you your ring?"

"The who?" Green Lantern asked confused.

"The guardians of the universe" Nightwing said slowly. "The head guys of the Corps?"

"I don't know anything about the guardians, and I don't know much about the Corps or the Coast City guy." Green Lantern responded, looking down at his ring. "All I know is a little blue moon man gave me this ring and told me to do what I thought was right."

"Well from what we've been hearing all day, I would say you are doing the right thing with it." Nightwing commented.

"Thank you, that means a lot to me." Green Lantern beamed.

"Just a bit of heads up though. I'd try to do the hero thing outside of Gotham. The usual nightlife doesn't like visitors."

"The Batman?" GL asked.

Robin smiled. "Yea, he doesn't like other heroes on his turf, lucky for you he's out of town this evening."

Green Lantern started to respond, but noticed he no longer had the attention of the Gotham heroes. He turned to follow their eyes, and saw what he had only read about in the paper: the bat signal.

"Come along Robin." Nightwing's voice was all business again.

Green Lantern turned around to bid farewell to Nightwing and Robin, but found they were already gone.

"Man, I didn't even hear them leave." GL commented as he scratched the back of his head.

"Hey Green Jeans." Robin's voice came from the ledge behind GL.

Lantern spun around to face the boy wonder who had apparently materialized out of nowhere. Despite his straight-faced demeanor, Lantern had the feeling that Robin was amused at the confusion he was causing.

"Care to tag along?"

"Sure" Lantern couldn't contain the smile that spread across his face as he floated into the air to follow Robin off the side of the building.

---

"Are you listening GL?" Nightwing asked.

Lantern turned his attention to the frowning vigilante. "Of course...but could we go over the plan one more time?"

Nightwing sighed, and Lantern hung his head. "Sorry, it's not everyday someone gets to see the Batmobile."

Lantern motioned to the slick vehicle that Nightwing and Robin had driven to their current location, the Gotham Park Hotel.

Responding to the bat signal, the heroes had learned that a group of heavily armed mercenaries had taken hostages at the hotel. Tonight was the city's annual charity drive, and many of the cities elite was in attendance. The mercenaries were demanding one million dollars in ransom from the family of each guest.

"Ok." Nightwing said, making sure he had Lanterns attention. "All 200 of the hostages are being held here, at the south end of the ballroom."

Lantern nodded as Nightwing indicated the position on a floor plan of the hotel, which was displayed on the computer monitor in the Batmobile's cockpit.

"I want you to come in here, through this skylight, and get the hostages out as quickly as you can, through this exit. Robin and I will take care of the gunmen. Got that?"

"Got it." Lantern replied. "Just one thing though."

Nightwing nodded for him to continue.

"How am I supposed to get 200 people out of there without anyone getting hurt?"

Nightwing looked at Lantern and blinked. It was Robin who answered the question with a simple gesture. Robin held up his right hand and tapped his middle finger, indicating where Lantern wore his ring.

Lantern looked down at his ring, and suddenly felt very stupid.

"Oh, yea. Obviously."

"Maybe you should just wait out here for us..." Nightwing started.

"No," Lantern said firmly, surprising even himself. "I can do this, I've done this before."

Nightwing considered him for a moment, before exiting the Batmobile and turning towards the building.

"Lets go then."

---

Kim groaned loudly as she flopped down on her bed. Following Monique and Kevin around all day had taken more out of her then she expected. Of course, harboring a bad mood in an amusement park wasn't easy either.

She rolled on her side and glanced at the phone that rest on her nightstand. She reached for it to call Ron, but pulled back.

She wanted to call and yell at him for missing the day. But she also wanted to hear about his day, if he had really been as busy as the news reports made him. If he were gallivanting about the country however, did he tell his parents, or would Kim get him in trouble by calling.

She finally decided to use the direct approach, and pulled her Kimmunicator from her duffle bag. Pressing a button in the middle of the device, she connected to Wade, the boy genius.

"Hey Kim." Wade said as he forced the remainder of a cheeseburger into his mouth. "What's up?"

"Can you find Ron for me Wade?"

"You mean the new Green Lantern?" Wade asked with a smile. "He's gaining some popularity online already. And from what the eyewitness are saying..."

"Wade. Ron, please." Kim growled cutting him off.

Wade quirked an eyebrow at the teen hero as his fingers danced absentmindedly across the keyboard.

"He's in Gotham City."

"Gotham City? What is he doing out there?" Kim wondered aloud.

"Apparently defusing a hostage situation." Wade said, as his image was replaced with a live news feed from GNN, the Gotham News Network.

Kim watched, as large groups of people were lowered from the side of a large hotel in what appeared to be a glowing green elevator car. As the car landed, police swarmed to the hostages, hustling them away from the building. The camera panned back up to the window they had come out of; just in time to catch a green blur zooming back inside the building.

Kim shut the device off, and laid it on her nightstand. She rested her head on the pillow, deep in thought about Ron and his newfound abilities.

---

Green Lantern flew back into the banquet hall, ring blazing with green energy. He looked around the room for a terrorist to strike, but found all but two were incapacitated. He paused in the doorway in amazement as Nightwing and Robin took down the final two terrorists.

Hearing footsteps thundering behind him Lantern spun around, ready to attack. He stopped short though, as Gotham's finest swarmed the room, rounding up the fallen terrorists.

Lantern turned back around, and as he suspected, found Nightwing and Robin gone. He shook his head as he made his own way out the window.

'How do they do that' he wondered.

Once outside, Lantern made his way back to the Batmobile, where he found Nightwing and Robin waiting for him.

"Nice work back there." Robin stated with a nod.

"You handle your ring well." Nightwing said extending a hand. "If you ever need anything, look me up."

"Thanks." Lantern said as he shook Nightwing's hand.

A beeping inside the Batmobile took Nightwing's attention, and he climbed into the cockpit, leaving Robin and Lantern outside.

"You've done this before haven't you?" Robin asked.

"What do you mean?"

"The hero thing. The way you handled yourself in there, even just getting the hostages out, you handled yourself good for someone who just picked up the hero gig."

Green Lantern smiled slightly and shrugged his shoulders. "Just comes natural to some I guess."

Robin gave a knowing smile. "I guess it does."

"One other thing," Robin added as he opened his door to the Batmobile. "If you are going to be the new Green Lantern, maybe you should try out a new uniform."

Lantern looked down at his costume. It did seem awful plain and military. "You think so?"

"Sure" Robin said, indicating his long green pants. "It worked for me."

With that as a goodbye, Robin shut the door to the Batmobile, and Lantern stepped back as the engine roared to life. After watching the Batmobile speed off into the night, Lantern rose slowly into the sky, and made his own way home.

---

Kim sat in her bed, wide-awake. Despite the almost nonstop activity of the past two days, she found that sleep was eluding her. She found herself worrying about Ron, and coupled with her slight anger and excitement for him, led to a sleepless night.

She rolled over and pulled the blanket up to her chin. Determined to finally fall asleep, she was surprised when her room was bathed in soft green light. Kim shot up in bed, her mind associating the green glow with her nemesis Shego. Scanning the room and finding no sign of the villain, Kim turned slowly towards the window.

Floating outside her window, surrounded by green energy, was Ron.

No, Kim told herself, not Ron, it was the Green Lantern. She climbed out of bed and hurried over to the window, unlatching it and allowing Lantern to fly in.

As Kim shut the window, Green Lantern plopped himself down on the edge of Kim's bed. With a thought, the mask covering Lantern's eyes disappeared.

"What's up KP?" Ron said in a friendly tone.

"I don't know Ron, you tell me." Kim said, crossing her arms over her chest.

Ron looked down at the ground. "Your ticked because I skipped out on the amusement park thing aren't you?"

"A little."

"I'm sorry KP. I was out flying around this morning. I can fly, how cool is that?" Ron said with a smile. It quickly faded as he noticed Kim's glare.

"Anyway," Ron continued. "There was this mugging downtown, and by the time I broke it up and got out of there, I had missed you guys. So I decided to spend the day adventuring."

"I saw some of it on the news."

Ron smiled again. "I was on the news! This is so awesome."

Kim sighed and sat down on the bed next to Ron.

"You realize you could've used that ring of yours to fly out to the amusement park and meet us there."

"I did think about that actually." Ron said looking at the ring. "But I've decided I'm going to keep this a secret, and that would have pretty much blown it. Besides, it's not like I spent the day playing video games."

"True," Kim admitted with a smile. "You did some good, but you had me worried."

"No need to worry KP." Ron said holding up his right fist. "With this baby, the Ron-man is unstoppable."

Kim laughed and rolled her eyes. "I hope so."

"A day's worth of heroing does take its toll though." Ron said as he rolled his shoulders. "I am just about beat."

"You were a busy man today." Kim said, then turned around, noticing a green glow from behind them.

Her eyes widened as an emerald green version of herself kneeled behind Ron rubbing his shoulders. The construct Kim was clad in only a bikini, and winked at Kim as it made eye contact with her.

"Ron!"

Ron's eyes snapped open as the construct Kim disappeared. He blushed slightly and chuckled.

"Sorry KP. My shoulders were sore, and you were the first thing that came to mind."

"In a bikini though?" Kim asked narrowing her eyes at Ron.

"Well..."

Kim looked down at herself as Ron motioned toward her body. She had been so surprised by Ron's appearance outside her window she had forgotten she was clad only in a small red tank top and a pair of black panties. Blushing, she covered her lower half with the blanket on her bed.

Ron smiled, and the construct Kim reappeared behind him, resuming the shoulder massage. This time however, the construct was clad in a heavy ski parka and baggy sweatpants.

Kim shook her head then laughed aloud for the first time all day. After a moment Ron joined in the laughter.

---

"Sir?"

A young man clad in a black suit walked nervously into the darkened cabin of a private jet.

"Yes?" The voice came as a low growl from the cabins only other occupant.

"We...we've been tracking the targets activities Sir. Highly active in the Midwest, out to the coast, then back towards Middleton, Michigan." The young man said, handing the other man a folder marked classified.

The man flipped through the folder before setting it on the seat next to him.

"So it's the Stoppable kid then?"

"Yes sir, we're fairly certain it is."

"Excellent."

The young man stepped back slightly as Major Force stood and rose to his full height. The massive man barely had enough room to stand in the cabin. He popped his neck, which along with his head and chest was a dark magenta color. The rest of his body was a shiny gold.

The young man shuddered as an evil grin spread across the Majors face. He had never met Force personally, but knew of him by reputation. A ruthless killing machine employed by the government, Major Force commanded the respect and fear of his associates. Said to be un-killable, Force was a one-man army.

"Then it should be fairly simple to acquire the ring, and have a little fun in the process."

To be continued...

**Authors Ramblings**.

First off, nothing here is owned, and this story is not done for profit. Secondly, thanks as always to Classic Cowboy for the help and beta read. And now for some somewhat useful information...

Because I'm using Ron Stoppable as the new Green Lantern instead of Kyle Rayner, I am setting this story in the time period Kyle got his ring. This was 1994 in real time; so for an idea of what the DC universe was like during this time, just check out what was going on in the mid 90's.

I may touch on events that happen in the DC universe that have an effect on GL, but I won't try to rewrite them all to include Ron. I will explain anything I don't go into much detail on though.

The biggest difference between then and now as far as Green Lantern is concerned, is that the Justice League has not yet reformed. This will play a big part in future chapters, but for right now there is no Justice League.

And for those of you who aren't familiar with any of the other DC characters I use, I'll provide short bios of the DC characters I use.

**Nightwing**- After his parents were killed, young Dick Grayson was adopted by billionaire Bruce Wayne. Wayne reveled to Dick by night he haunted the streets as the Batman. Trained by the Batman, Dick became the original Robin. Dick was Batman's sidekick for many years, and eventually came into his own as the leader of the Teen Titans. After being fired by the Batman, Dick gave up the mantle of Robin to become Nightwing. Nightwing is a top-notch acrobat, and martial artist. His detective skills are second only to the Batman.

**Robin**- Tim Drake is the third teen to wear the Robin costume. After the death of his predecessor, Jason Todd, Tim noticed a change in Batman's behavior. Something of a detective himself, Tim deduced Batman and Nightwing's secret identities, and assisted them in defeating Two Face. Convincing Wayne that Batman needed a Robin, Wayne allowed Tim to train as the new Robin. Though fairly new to the superhero game, Robin was trained by the best and is fast on his way to creating his own Robin legacy.

**Hal Jordan**- Considered by many to be the greatest Green Lantern of all time, Jordan was given his ring by the dieing alien Abin Sur. Using an unmatched willpower, and a complete lack of fear, Jordan was an icon to fellow heroes. That all changed when the space conqueror Mongul destroyed Jordan's home city, Coast City. Jordan tried to use his ring to recreate the city, but was stopped by the guardians of the universe. Enraged at the Guardians callousness, Jordan slaughtered the Green Lantern corps, and stole their energy, becoming Parallax. Parallax's plan to recreate the universe was stopped by Earth's heroes during the Zero Hour storyline. He would eventually give his life saving the sun from being extinguished. Jordan was given a chance to redeem his sins as the avenging agent of god, The Specter.

As always, thanks for reading, be kind and review. Chapter three coming soon, with Green Lantern facing his first real test, and enduring his first real tragedy.

-R


	3. With This Ring Pt III

Chapter 3

"How about this one KP?" Ron asked as his Green Lantern uniform sprouted a long green cape, with a large lantern symbol on the back.

"Totally lame." Kim sighed with a smile.

Ron groaned and flopped down on the grass next to Kim, his Lantern uniform melting back into his usual red hockey jersey and baggy cargo pants.

For the last hour Kim and Ron had sat on a secluded grassy hill overlooking Middleton. Once their picnic lunch had been eaten, Ron decided to spring some new uniform ideas on Kim. All idea's had been shot down in a blaze of glory.

"I don't see what's wrong with some of these uniform's KP." Ron mumbled as he looked up at the sky.

"Well, besides most of them being tacky and unoriginal, they just aren't you."

"Unoriginal?" Ron raised an eyebrow at Kim. "I don't know what you mean."

"Ron." Kim started dryly. "Your second variation was red and blue, with a large "G" on the chest, and a red cape. It doesn't get much more unoriginal then that."

Ron huffed and crossed his arms.

"Look, if you want to go with a new look, its gotta be you. Something original, but classic."

Ron sat silent in thought for several moments. Finally, taking a deep breath he stood up.

"Alright Kim, I think I've got it."

Kim watched as Ron's clothes disappeared in a flash of green light. No matter how many times she watched him do it, it still amazed her.

"Wow." Kim gasped as she took in Ron's latest uniform attempt.

The first thing that caught her eye was the lantern symbol in the middle of Ron's chest. The green glow that came from it made it stand out from the black background of the uniform top. Similar lantern designs adorned each of Ron's shoulders. His gloves were black, while shiny green gauntlets covered his wrists and forearms. The pants were black and seemed to be one with the top of the uniform. The boots were split, with the outside being green and the inside being black. A simple black domino mask remained over Ron's eyes.

"Well?" Ron asked nervously.

"I like it." Kim said softly as she rose to her feet, and approached Ron.

Ron stiffened slightly as Kim ran her fingers over the lantern symbol on his chest.

"It's awesome, Ron. Or should I call you Green Lantern?"

"Only when I'm on duty KP." Ron said with a wink as the mask over his eyes disappeared.

Kim smiled and returned to her seat on the ground.

"So you're getting the hang of the ring pretty good?"

"Yea I think so." Ron said as he looked down at the ring. "Pretty much anything I can think of I can make. I basically just will it to life."

Kim opened her mouth to ask Ron another question, but was interrupted by a familiar jingle from inside their picnic basket. Kim groaned and reached into the basket and produced her Kimmunicator, pressing the button to talk to Wade.

"What's the sitch Wade?"

"Hey Kim, sorry to interrupt lunch but there's some trouble in Chicago. Some nutcase named Ohm is tearing up the place."

"We're on it Wade, what's our ride?"

"No need for that KP." Ron interjected. "This ride is courtesy of Lantern air."

Kim gasped as a green airline seat appeared beneath her. A seat belt strapped her in and the seat slowly rose into the air along side Ron.

"Tell Chicago we'll be there in a jiffy Wade." Ron said as his mask reappeared over his eyes. "Kim Possible and the Green Lantern are on the job."

---

"We flew out here for this?" Green Lantern said, pointing his figure towards a partially crowded intersection in downtown Chicago.

In the middle of the intersection stood Ohm, clad in armor. The armor was a light shade of purple, and had a small lighting bolt insignia on the left chest plate. Ohm turned its head towards Lantern and Kim, revealing a shiny face plate, indicating to Kim that there was someone inside.

Seeing the teen heroes arrive, Ohm dropped a large power cable he was holding and turned towards them.

"Man this is going to be a cinch." Lantern said with a smile.

"Careful Ron, we don't know what he s capable of." Kim said placing a hand on Green Lanterns shoulder.

"Please Kim." Lantern said, shaking off her hand. "He can't have anything the ring can't handle."

"All right ugly, give it up peacefully before we have to put you down hard." Green Lantern said loudly, ring glowing green, as he walked towards Ohm.

Ohm considered the young hero for a moment, before laughing out loud. The slight took Green Lantern by surprise, but not as much as Ohm's next move. The villain raised his hand quickly and a yellow blast of energy shot out even quicker. The blast struck Green Lantern square in the chest, and sent him flying back several feet, where he crashed through a glass storefront.

"Ro...GL!" Kim cried as she watched her best friend crash into the store.

"Don't be sad girl. You can join him if you would like."

Kim turned just in time to cartwheel out of the way of another energy blast. As she landed her cartwheel, she did a series of flips and rolls, each one to avoid an energy blast, and each one taking her closer to her target. Once she was finally in close on Ohm she delivered a vicious roundhouse kick to his head.

"Ouch!" Kim shouted hopping backwards, favoring her foot.

"Did you think this armor is just for looks?" Ohm said with a laugh. Despite his mocking, Kim's kick had taken him off balance a bit, but not enough to physically harm him.

"When I'm done with it, it certainly won't be" Kim responded as she reached into her belt to produce a handful of tiny force grenades. Wade had designed the grenades for minor demolitions, doors, and robots, escape pods etc. Kim suspected the right amount of them might put a dent in Ohm.

She raised her hand to throw the grenades, but stopped short as Ohm was launched backwards by a blast of green energy. Kim turned to see Green Lantern flying towards her, a large tear in his uniform where Ohms blast had struck.

"You ok?" Kim asked as Lantern landed next to her.

"Never...better." GL forced out, though Kim could tell the blast hurt him more then he was letting on.

"Why don't you make sure the civilians are out of the way, and I'll finish Ohm off?" Kim suggested.

"No." Lantern said sternly, giving Kim a look she had never seen from Ron before.

"I'll handle this."

"But Ron..."

"DON'T call me that" Lantern growled. "It's Green Lantern now Kim."

Kim took a step back at Lantern's orders. She couldn't remember Ron ever getting that upset, or having such a...determined look on his face. She watched as he flew off towards Ohm, who was picking himself up off the ground.

A green glove was forming around Lantern's fist as he approached Ohm. The glove looked like a medieval gauntlet, with large green spikes protruding from the knuckles. Lantern reached Ohm just as the villain rose to his feet. A powerful uppercut from the construct-covered fist sent Ohm a few feet into the air, and right back to the ground.

Lantern was on Ohm before he could get back to his feet again. The construct glove had become a giant mace, which Lantern used to clobber Ohm upside the head.

"Lantern! There's someone inside that armor!" Kim yelled as she raced towards the battle, hoping to prevent Lantern from beating Ohm to death.

Lantern didn't seem to acknowledge Kim's cries but his green mace vanished, and a green chainsaw appeared.

"Oh god." Kim muttered as she approached Lantern. "Don't!"

Lantern couldn't hear Kim's plea over the sound of his construct saw tearing through Ohm's armor. He could only hear Ohm's scream, and when he heard that he knew it was over.

The saw vanished and Lantern pried open the armor like a cracked nut. Reaching inside Lantern yanked out a small man dressed in a skintight suit the same color as the armor.

"End of the road chuckles." Lantern said holding the man by the collar. Lantern turned and tossed the man to the ground at Kim's feet. "There ya go Kim, one villain, hold the armor."

Kim blinked as Lantern brushed by her.

"Moody much?" she mumbled under her breath.

Beneath her Ohm started to say something, but a quick kick to his midsection silenced him. Kim stood by him until a group of Chicago's finest arrived to take him into custody. Once that was completed she turned to find Lantern and head home.

"Of course it was no problem." Lantern was saying to a gathering of reporters. "I'm Green Lantern, I'm great!"

Kim rolled her eyes and cleared her throat loudly, causing Lantern and several of the reporters to turn in her direction.

"And where would any hero be without his lovely assistant." Lantern said with a smile. "Kim Possible ladies and gentlemen!"

Several members of the on looking crowd applauded, and a couple of reporters made their way over to a shocked Kim.

"Miss Possible, what's it like to be working with a major superhero like Green Lantern?"

"Miss Possible, now that you're almost out of high school, will you be moving up and side kicking to a hero like Green Lantern?"

"Uh..." Kim stammered, taken aback by the questions. She had dealt with the media more often then not, but this line of questioning was not something she was used to.

Luckily for her, a green circle appeared beneath her and she began to rise in the air.

"Sorry folks, no time to chat. Take care!" Lantern called out with a wave as the two departed overhead.

"Nice save." Kim grumbled as she sat down in the recliner that had appeared on her green platform.

"I couldn't leave my partner hanging could I?"

"Don't you mean lovely assistant?" Kim growled.

"Heh...Sorry about that."

"Save it hero, lets just head home."

Lantern nodded, and sped up slightly, trying to quicken what was sure to be a frosty ride home.

---

Kim walked gently down the shiny emerald staircase that led to her front porch. The idea of flying around on something made of green energy, and powered only by a persons will, was still new to her. If it had been anybody but Ron wearing the ring, she probably would have made her own way to and from Chicago. But she had known Ron almost all her life, and trusted him completely. Even with his rapidly growing ego.

"Ground floor, homes of the teenaged and heroic, and skimpy undergarments." Green Lantern said with a smirk as Kim stepped off the construct pathway.

Kim rolled her eyes at Lantern before turning towards her front door.

"Coming in for a bit? I'm sure dinner is still warm."

Lantern considered the offer for a minute, but shook his head no. While he hated to pass up Mrs. Possible's cooking, he felt like flying a little more to clear his head.

"I'll have to take a rain check KP. Tell the folks I said 'hello'." Lantern said with a wave as he turned and flew off.

"Bye." Kim said softly as she began to open the door to her house. The beeping of her Kimmunicator stopped her, and she produced the device, connecting herself to Wade.

"Hey Kim, are you still with Ron?"

"Just missed him Wade, he just...flew off." Kim said looking towards the direction Ron had left. "That's going to take some getting used to. Why what's up?"

"Well, it's probably nothing, but I've been picking up some weird energy signatures from outside the banquet center where Ron said he got the ring." Wade said as the screen split to show an infrared map of the tri city area. The map zoomed in on the Middleton Banquet Center, and Kim noticed a small green dot on the map.

"What do you think it is?"

"I'm not sure." Wade shrugged. "Could be old energy readings from the ring, it could be Ron's little blue man sleeping in the trash. I just thought he would want to check it out."

"I'll check it out for him. Wouldn't want to bother Mr. Big time superhero with something that might be trivial." Kim said as she rolled her eyes.

"Am I picking up a little jealousy over here Kim?" Wade smirked.

His smile faded as Kim shot a death glare into the Kimmunicator.

"I am not jealous. Just...concerned. I'll give you a call after I check this out."

Wade nodded as Kim closed the connection and made her way into the house to retrieve the keys to the car.

---

Green Lantern smiled as he took a final pass around the city. It was an amazing view, one he had never fully appreciated before. He was usually to busy screaming, or covering his eyes to take in the scenery whenever he was at this height.

The ring changed that, it put him almost at ease, calmed him. And the fact that flying, and everything else he was doing was the product of his own mind helped reassure him to.

As he made his way back home, Lanterns mind drifted back to the day's events. The flight home from Chicago had been as silent as he suspected, but he couldn't put his finger on why. They had been getting along fine during their picnic, and on the way to Chicago. It wasn't until the fight...

Lanterns train of thought stopped at that station. Could it be that Kim was jealous of his newfound power? The thought brought a thin smile to Lantern's face. Kim Possible, the world-renowned hero, the girl who can do anything, might be jealous of her bumbling sidekick. It was certainly the only explanation Lantern could come up with.

With a sigh he pushed the thought from his mind. He would ask Kim about it tomorrow. Lantern set himself down gently on the corner of his street and Middleton's Main Street.

Green Lantern walked behind the recently vacated gas station that occupied the corner lot. When he emerged on the other side, he was once again Ron Stoppable. He whistled to himself as he walked down the street, quickly approaching his house. He wondered what his mother had prepared for dinner.

"Probably leftover's again." Ron muttered with a shudder. His father, who usually did all of the cooking, was out of town for the week on business. Luckily for Ron's taste buds, his father was due back in town tomorrow afternoon.

Ron strode up his porch and into his house. He was surprised to find the house darkened and empty.

"Mom?" Ron called as he walked into the kitchen flipping on the lights. "Rufus?"

Ron scratched the back of his head in confusion. He couldn't remember his mother having plans for the evening. And surely Rufus wouldn't have gone anywhere, Ron doubted he was still mad about staying home during the picnic.

A slight rapping at the front door jolted Ron from his thoughts.

"Maybe that's Mom now. With Bueno Nacho! She just needs help with the door." Ron said excitedly as he approached the door and swung it open.

Instead of finding his mother on the other side, Ron was surprised to see a very large deliveryman. The man, dressed in non descript gray overalls and low pulled ball cap, loomed over Ron.

"Special delivery."

"Uh, thanks." Ron said as he accepted the medium sized package. "Do I need to sign or anything?"

"Nope...good day."

"You too..." Ron said as he watched the large man leave. Ron shut the door behind him and made his way back to the kitchen where he placed the package on the table. He removed the card from the top and read its inscription.

_Son, _

_Please enjoy...be home soon with supper. _

Mother 

"O-o-o kay." Ron said slowly placing the card on the table, then pulling the package open to see what the surprise was. "This is just a little weir...oh god..."

Ron jerked quickly away from the package, vomiting all over the floor beside him. The package fell over, spilling its contents onto the floor. Ron fell to his knees and vomited again as his mothers severed head, with Rufus' broken body sticking out of her mouth, rolled across the floor.

The head stopped as it hit a large purple boot that had entered the kitchen. Ron looked up to see the deliveryman, removing his hat, and tearing his coveralls away from his body.

"Hey kid." Major Force said with a smile. "Time to die."

---

Kim pulled the family Cadillac to a stop outside the Middleton Banquet Center. She had bugged her parents about getting her own car when she turned sixteen, but realizing her parents wouldn't give in, she resided herself to driving their cars when need be. Ron had scoffed at her complaints, saying he would be thrilled to have a Cadillac to drive around.

'Guess he doesn't have to worry about transportation now.' Kim thought as she exited the car and stretched.

Kim walked around the side of the building, using the Kimmunicator to track the energy source to its location. She found herself in a side alley, standing on top of the energy source, according to the Kimmunicator.

"Alright, if I were an alien energy source, where would I be hiding?" Kim wondered aloud as she scanned the alley. Her eyes finally settled on a trio of trashcans that were illuminated by a green light.

"Well I guess that's a good a spot as any. Um..Mr. Alien, hello?" Kim called as she approached the trashcans.

"I'm a friend of Green Lanterns, I was...oh" Kim stopped as she parted the trashcans. Instead of a sleeping alien, there was a medium sized green rock lying behind the cans. The rock was the same color as Ron's ring, and the whole thing was smooth and shiny.

"It's beautiful..." Kim gasped as she picked up the rock, her face awash in the green glow. Absentmindedly she answered the Kimmunicator, which had begun beeping.

"Kim..."

"Hey Wade, I found our energy source. You've got to see this though, it's unbelievable."

"Not now Kim, you've got to get to Ron's." Wade said with seriousness in his voice Kim had rarely heard.

"What's wrong Wade?" Kim asked, placing the rock in the backpack she had brought along.

"Ron's in trouble, get there as soon as you can."

Kim closed the connection and sprinted back towards her car, dread washing over her. For Wade to call her like that...it had to be serious.

---

The peace and quiet of the Middleton evening was shattered as the side of the Stoppable house exploded in a flash of blinding green light.

Major Force chuckled as he picked himself up off the ground. He brushed himself off and turned to Ron whose Green Lantern uniform had appeared over him as he stepped out of the hole in the side of the house.

"Is that the all you've got? Because it's going to take a lot more then that to stop me."

"Why?" Lantern demanded, his fist and eyes glowing bright green.

Force chuckled again. "You really are as dumb as they say aren't you?"

Lantern said nothing, instead nailing Force with another blast of green energy.

"I asked you a question." Lantern said as he walked towards Force, who was again picking himself up off the ground.

"Why do you think kid? For the ring. That's all I want. Now hand it over, and I'll be kind enough to send you to see mommy again."

Lantern raised his fist and fired another energy blast, but this time Force was ready. He sidestepped the errant blast, and dashed towards Lantern. A powerful fist connected with Lanterns jaw, sending him flying backwards.

Before Lantern could pick himself up, Force was on top of him again, grabbing him by his hair and lifting him into the air.

"Or we could do this the hard way, where I pry the ring off of your dead finger. Either way is fine, I could use a little exercise. Mommy wasn't much of a challenge." Force sneered into Lantern's ear.

Lantern growled as he swung his foot backwards into Major Force's groin. Force yelped and dropped Lantern, who formed a mace and swung at Force, striking him in the kneecap.

"You killed my mom...and Rufus, to get this ring. What do you want with it?"

Force answered with a blast of black energy from his hands. Lantern saw the attack, and prepared a round shield with a lantern symbol in the middle. The blasts struck the shield, pushing Lantern back a few feet.

"My employers want it." Force said, sidestepping Lantern, who lunged at him with a sword. "Now make it easier on yourself and..argh!"

Force looked at his side to find the green sword blade sticking into his yellow flesh.

"I'm supposed to be invulnerable." Force said, examining the blood that was rushing from the wound. "Now you've pissed me off kid."

"Pissed _you_ off?" Lantern yelled. _"You?!"_

A jade blade appeared on the back of each one of Lantern's hands. He took a swing at Force, the blade leaving a gash across his face.

"I'll show you pissed off." Lantern growled.

He ran at Force, launching into a fierce uppercut. When the uppercut landed though, it was not the sound of ring construct cutting through armored hide. It was the sound of a frail teenaged hand striking a hardened warrior.

"Argh" Lantern dropped to his knees, holding his mangled hand. He tried to will the blades back, but to no avail. Glancing to his ring, he noticed the familiar glow was gone. He tried the blades again, but came to a startling conclusion.

"The ring...it's dead..."

To be continued...

---

A/N

Well there it is. Hope everyone enjoyed the chapter, the next one will be coming soon, and will feature the shocking battle between the new Green Lantern and Major Force, a guest appearance by another DC legend, and a major decision for Ron. So thanks for reading and see ya soon.


	4. With This Ring Pt IV

Chapter 4

The Stoppable back yard looked more like a war zone then it did a yard. The area was littered with debris from the side of the house, and several small fires smoldered throughout the area. Amidst the rubble stood the two responsible for the destruction.

Major Force towered over the Green Lantern, who was on his knees, trying in vain to get his ring to work.

"Looks like it's the end of the line kid." Force said, delivering a kick to Lanterns side, sending him sprawling across the yard.

"No…" Lantern wheezed out, trying to regain his breath. "Make you pay…"

Force laughed out loud as he walked over to Lantern and picked him up by the neck.

"And how do you propose to do that? Your not even man enough to make your ring work anymore." Force chuckled again, "No there wont be any vengeance for you today kid. Though maybe your red headed girl friend could come find me and do it for you. From what I hear, she's done all the work for you anyways, before you got this little trinket."

Lantern felt his breath getting shorter as Force squeezed tighter on his neck, his windpipe slowly closing. He tried using his legs to springboard off of Forces chest, but found his grip to be much to strong. Black edged at the smiling visage of Major Force as Lantern started to slip into unconsciousness.

'Mom…Kim…I'm sorry…'

---

Kim had barely put the family car in park before she was out of it, sprinting up the driveway to the Stoppable house. She had seen the giant hole in the side of the house from the road, and her heart had begun racing.

She ran around the side of the house to the back yard, where she skidded to a stop. Amidst a pile of what used to be the kitchen, stood Major Force, holding the limp form of her best friend in his massive hands.

"Ron!" Kim shouted, breaking out into a full sprint.

Force turned to the sound of the voice, only to find the heel of Kim's boot planted in his face. The blow caught him off guard and he stumbled backwards, dropping Lantern to the ground. As Kim landed from her kick, her hand shot out, launching a tiny pink ball at Major Force. Force stared directly at the ball as it exploded in a blinding flash of white light.

As the villain screamed and rubbed at his eyes, Kim turned her attention to Green Lantern, who was stirring slightly.

"Ron?"

"Kim…" Lantern started weakly. "Killed…mom…Kim get out of here."

Kim's eyes widened at Ron's words. Had this monster killed Mrs. Stoppable? And been able to deliver such a beating to Ron, despite his magical ring.

"Kim…"

"Don't try to talk Ron, we've got to get you out of here." Kim leaned forward to try and help up her friend.

"Look out."

Ron's warning came to late. Major Force's energy blast struck Kim square in the back, tearing through her backpack and black mission shirt. She screamed in pain as the blast sent her forward, toppling over Green Lantern. The contents of Kim's pack, including her glowing green rock, spilled out onto the ground.

"Pretty cute girly." Force said, still rubbing at his eyes with one hand. "I thought only the Bat's ilk used little tricks like that."

Kim struggled to her feet, trying to block out the pain from her back, and the smell of her own singed flesh.

"I've got more then nifty tricks you bastard." She spat as she got herself into a fighting stance.

Before Force could respond, Kim had covered the distance between the two, launching into a volley of kicks and punches. The assault drove Force backwards, but appeared to be having little affect on him physically.

Lantern rolled onto his side and started to stand up. He lost his balance and fell back to his hands and knees, his face starting directly into Kim's green rock. As he watched the rock began to glow a brighter green, and it started to change its shape.

After a couple of seconds the rock had turned itself into a glowing green lantern. Green Lantern looked down at his ring, which had started to glow again. In spite of the situation, a faint smile played across his lips. Acting on an instinct that wasn't his own, Lantern took the lantern in his left hand and pressed his ring hand into the side of it.

Lantern felt the rings power surge through him once again as he recited an oath he never knew, one as old as the universe its self.

"In brightest day-in blackest night. No evil shall escape my sight. Let t hose who worship evil's might…beware my power…Green Lanterns light!"

Lantern rose from the ground, leaving his lantern there. His eyes glowed green again, and the tears in his costume were fixed. He watched Kim fighting a losing battle with a metapowered superhuman. He waited for the right opportunity…

Kim back flipped out of the way of a haymaker thrown by Major Force. As she landed, prepared to dodge another attack, Force was knocked aside by a near blinding blast of green energy.

Kim's gaze followed the blast back to its source, which to her surprise was a very healthy looking Green Lantern floating towards her.

"Ron? What?"

"Your green rock…it's the ring's power source…I guess it needed a recharge."

"I'm glad your ok, you looked pretty bad when I got here."

"I am pretty bad." Lantern said grimly. "But I'll make it."

"That's nice to hear." Force said as he stood up. "I'd hate for you to miss the best part."

"So would I." Lantern growled.

Before Force could move another muscle his upper body was encased in a green construct straight jacket. A pair of shackles appeared on his ankles, and the villain toppled to the ground.

Lantern and Kim walked over watching Force struggle against his bonds. Kim kicked him in the side rolling him over onto his back.

"Talk." Lantern demanded, his face menacing in the green light of his ring.

Force laughed. "I'm a highly trained government agent kid, do you really think your little laser show is going to make me talk?"

Lantern said nothing as a large green jackhammer appeared in his hands. Lantern walked over and placed the tip in between Force's eyes.

"We could find out." Kim said, hoping Lantern was bluffing.

Before she could find out, the back yard of the house was bathed in the white glow of police searchlights. Kim turned to see several Police and Global Justice agents swarming the area.

"Drop the weapon and put your hands in the air!" One of the police officers shouted, as his unit moved slowly towards Lantern and Kim. "Step away from him!"

Kim did as told, and approached the officer slowly with her hands in the air.

"Officer Ulrich." Kim said with a nod.

"Kimberly, what happened here?"

"I'll tell you what happened here, this son of a bitch killed a woman tonight, and he's going to pay." Green Lantern said, motioning towards Major Force.

"I believe that isn't true officer." Force stated as he walked towards them. "Major Force, officer, I'm here on government business, I believe my credentials should check out on your computer."

Kim and Lantern glanced at each other wide-eyed, completely speechless.

"Right this way Major." Officer Ulrich said, motioning for a pair of other officers to escort Force to a cruiser. "As for you…"

Lantern was in Ulrich's face before he could finish his sentence.

"What the hell do you think your doing?!" Lantern shouted. "That man is a murder!"

"That has yet to be determined young man. Now stand down."

Lantern's stare bored into Ulrich for a moment longer before he finally broke it. Ulrich took a step back as Lantern's lantern floated over in between them; stopping when it reached Lanterns gloved hand. Without a word to Kim or Ulrich, Lantern flew off, quickly fading into a green streak in the sky.

---

Green Lantern descended upon the grassy knoll that his day had begun on. As soon as his feet touched the ground, he dropped his lantern and collapsed.

Pain that had been pushed aside by the adrenaline of the fight came roaring back. His hand was swollen and throbbed painfully, to say nothing of the ribs he feared cracked. Among his various cuts and bruises though, none hurt so much as the one in his heart.

Lantern reached up and pulled off his mask, the night air cool on his tearful eyes. Memories of his mom and Rufus played in his mind. The thought of opening the package still made him queasy. Lost in thought for several minutes he came to the same conclusion several times. He had failed.

"All this power…and I couldn't even save the ones I love." Ron whimpered, taking off his power ring. In frustration he threw the ring at the lantern, the objects making a tinging sound as they struck.

Ron buried his head in his hands, his tears soaking through his black gloves. He remained that way until he heard a soft noise next to him. Lifting his head, he noticed that his lantern was glowing green again. Curious, Ron picked up the device and set it up right. When he did, the lantern acted as something of a video projector, displaying an emerald picture in the air in front of him.

"Greetings Green Lantern."

Ron thought the voice sounded familiar, and decided it must have been little blue man who gave him the ring.

"I'm no Green Lantern." Ron mumbled looking at the ground again.

"Now is a dire time for the Green Lantern Corps and the Universe." The recording played on, oblivious to Ron's emotions.

"You have been chosen to be the bearer of the final power ring. Until recently there were thousands of Green Lanterns from all across the universe. Each wielder of a power ring was given a sector of space to patrol, 3,600 in total. You, Green Lantern of Earth, were preceded in Sector 2814 by Hal Jordan."

The narration paused for a moment as a picture of Hal Jordan appeared. Ron recognized him as the Green Lantern Wade had shown him.

"Until recently Jordan was the Corps. greatest champion. The destruction of the Earth metropolis of Coast City unhinged Jordan. His attempt to rebuild the city and its seven million inhabitants was…regrettably thwarted by my fellow guardians and I. Jordan went on a murderous rampage, killing several other Green Lanterns. The battle culminated on Oa, where Jordan entered the central power battery, which was the source of the Green Lanterns power."

Ron watched wide-eyed as the images of a hard fought battle raged between Jordan and several other Green Lanterns. The images ended with Jordan exiting a giant version of Ron's own lantern. No longer dressed in his corps. uniform, Jordan was still wearing green and black, but it now seemed more menacing.

The blue alien who gave Ron his ring appeared in the lanterns video.

"I am called Ganthet. I am the final guardian of the universe. With their dying breaths my brothers passed their power into the ring that you now wear. Your ring does not have the…flaws that previous rings have had. Use it wisely, and to do what is right. You are the Green Lantern."

Ganthet's image vanished, and the lantern's glow stopped. Alone with his thoughts once again, Ron picked up his discarded ring and stared at it intently.

"I don't deserve this." He said finally, raising his arm to throw the ring away.

A firm hand on his gauntlet stopped him. Ron turned to see Kim holding his arm, tears in her eyes.

"Don't Ron."

"Kim, I can't…I don't." Ron stammered.

"Ron, I just caught the tail end of your little movie there." Kim said as she sat on the grass next to him. "You can't just throw away that ring, and that kind of responsibility."

"I failed my mom, and Rufus, how am I supposed to be the last member of a galactic police force if I cant even save my own family?" Ron asked Kim, his eyes red from crying, but deathly serious.

"Do it because of them…honor them. Think of the people you saved in Chicago this afternoon. Think of that woman you saved downtown the other day." Kim paused, unable to tell if her words were having the desired effect. "Think of me Ron. If it weren't for you, Killigan would have finished me off."

After a moment's consideration, Ron slipped the ring back onto his finger. He gave Kim a small sad smile, then slouched forward. Kim put her arm around him, and Ron nestled his head against her shoulder. The two remained that way for what seemed like an eternity.

---

"Local Woman Caught in Crossfire."

Ron paled as his eyes scanned over the article in the Middleton Courier. The article mentioned the fight between Major Force and Green Lantern, but gave no mention of Mrs. Stoppables murder. Instead, the paper had listed her as a casualty of the battle.

"What…I don't understand." Ron said softly setting the newspaper down on the Possible's kitchen table. Kim had convinced Ron to stay with them until his father returned home.

Ron turned his attention to Kim, who was leaning against the kitchen sink, studying the floor.

"Kim…what happened after I left?"

Kim sighed and looked up at Ron with sad eyes. Across the table from Ron, Mr. Stoppable excused himself and made his way into the living room. Following his cue, Mrs. Possible and the twins both followed.

"Ron this isn't going to be easy to hear."

"What happened after I left?" Ron repeated, thought it wasn't as much a question as it was a demand.

"When they ran Force's credentials, they found he was in Middleton on government business. They also found that he had an outstanding warrant from a prison escape a week or so ago." Kim looked at Ron, who remained silent.

"Anyways, they took him in, but by the time they got him to station, his government clearance had been revoked, and any acknowledgment he was on duty in Middleton was gone. He was taken to that meta human prison, the Slab."

"So they put Force away for a previous crime, but not my mothers murder?" Ron said slowly, taking it all in.

Kim was silent for a moment before she continued. "There was no evidence your mother was murdered."

Ron's jaw dropped as he bolted upright from his chair. "What?!"

Kim looked away waiting for what came next.

"What do you mean no evidence? Her…her head in a box isn't enough evidence? Or how about Rufus? Is that not evidence?"

"When they found your mom…she had been decapitated, but there was no box. The investigators at the scene said the cut was so clean…it was probably done by an errant energy blast."

Ron leaned on the counter next to Kim, his head hanging over the sink. He felt like he was going to be sick again. "And Rufus?"

"They found him crushed under debris." Kim said placing what she hoped would be a comforting hand on Ron's shoulder.

Ron quickly pulled away from Kim's hand and begun pacing the kitchen with his hands over his face.

"So Force kills my mom and Rufus, and gets away with it. Everyone thinks that she was killed by accident?"

Kim said nothing, and Ron paced in silence for several more minutes.

"Why didn't you tell me this last night?"

"You were already so hurt Ron. I didn't want to upset you anymore."

"Oh, like telling me this morning makes it so much easier to take? You didn't think I would want to know about them completely changing what happened to my mom?"

"Ron, I…" Kim started before Ron cut her off with a wave of his hand.

"Forget it, I've got to go pick up my dad from the airport."

Without another word Ron left out the front door, leaving Kim to slouch against the kitchen counter and sob softly to herself.

---

The next few days were a sad blur for Ron. Monday was the calling hours, followed by the funeral on Tuesday. Kim had come to both though Ron didn't do much in the way of conversing with he. Wade had even showed up in person to offer his condolences. Wednesday had been spent in his and his father's hotel room.

Mr. Stoppable hadn't spoke much to his son since his return. Finally late Wednesday evening Mr. Stoppable broke the silence and asked Ron to join him at the table.

"They can't rebuild the house." Mr. Stoppable stated plainly. "There was to much structural damage done. And our insurance doesn't cover that kind of…catastrophe."

Ron said nothing, choosing instead to stare blankly at the tabletop. Mr. Stoppable was silent for several more moments.

"Ronald…what happened?"

Ron looked up to see his father staring at him with tears in his eyes. In all his years he had never seen his father cry. He had cried at the funeral, but despite that he had still seemed strong. Looking at him now, he looked like a broken man.

"I know it was you there Ronald, in that costume. The video they have of it wasn't very clear, but I've seen the other news reports. I would know my own son."

Ron gulped and looked back down at the table. He took a minute to collect himself and recounted the story of how he got his ring, and what had really happened to his mother. Not once during the story did Ron look up to see his fathers face. Once he had finished, his father stood up and walked to the window of the room, which over looked downtown Middleton.

"Could you give me some time alone Ronald?" Mr. Stoppable asked in a quiet voice.

Ron said nothing, but put his shoes on and exited the room, and the hotel. Once outside the hotel he took to a side alley, where in a flash of green light he became Green Lantern again.

Taking to the sky Green Lantern headed east. He had some unfinished business to attend to, and had a good feeling where to start.

---

Nightwing smiled to himself as he landed on the rooftop of the Gotham Park Hotel. Aside from himself, Robin, and a few others, most heroes avoided Gotham City completely. Some despised the city for its constant dreariness, but most did so because of Batman. Whether it is out of fear or respect, most heroes avoided the city. Yet here was the new Green Lantern standing on top of a building, blazing a giant green searchlight into the sky. It appeared to be the kid's version of the bat signal, only with Nightwing's symbol where the bat would be.

"Real subtle." Nightwing said, as he approached Green Lantern, who jumped visibly.

"We'll your not exactly in the yellow pages." Green Lantern replied. "I need your help."

"Right to the point. What's up?" Nightwing asked crossing his arms.

"What do you know about Major Force?"

"Force? Sometimes hero, sometimes villain. I know the government before has employed him, though you usually can't get them to admit it. Last I knew he broke out of prison when Mongul did. I haven't heard anything from him since."

Lanterns looked away, and then back at Nightwing.

"I need to know who he worked for recently. Any contacts he made, contracts he took, anything like that."

"That's pretty tough information to come by kid. The kind of government work he does…well its not exactly the public information kind."

"Major Force killed my mother, Nightwing." Lantern said looking at the rooftop clutching his fists. "He's been taken care of, but I want who was pulling his strings."

Nightwing stared at the young man before him. He knew all to well what it was like to lose a parent. Nightwing had lost his when he was younger then Lantern, and Batman had helped him to bring his parents killers to justice.

"Give me an hour." Nightwing said, putting his hand on Lantern's shoulder. "I'll see what I can find."

Green Lantern nodded and watched as Nightwing walked to the edge of the building and fired a jump line from a device in his gauntlet.

"Make yourself at home." Nightwing called over his shoulder as he dove off the edge of the building, disappearing into the night.

Lantern stood there for a moment, and then flew off in the opposite direction Nightwing had gone. Spotting a car jacking a block away, Lantern sped towards it and prepared to try and hurry the hour along as best he could.

To be continued…

---

A/N-

For future reference, I'll be referring to the things that Ron makes with his ring as 'constructs'. Just thought I would give a heads up so that confuses no one. Other then that thanks to Classic Cowboy for the help and support, and to everyone else that has read and reviewed. See ya next chapter

-R


	5. With This Ring Pt V

Chapter 5

Green Lanterns teeth chattered as he approached his destination. Thanks to some quick research by Nightwing, Lantern now had a name and location of the man responsible for sending Major Force his way.

William Harrington was in charge of a super secret government group that observed metahuman activity. After the very sloppy, and very public display in Middleton, the group had been disbanded quickly, and spread across the country. According to Nightwing's sources, Harrington had been sent to Alaska.

Ron's conversation with Nightwing was in the back of his mind, as he descended on the house belonging to Harrington.

"What are you going to do when you find him?" Nightwing asked as he handed Lantern a manila envelope.

"_Make him pay for what he did to my mother." Lantern said as he leafed through the contents of the envelope, which included a photo, a resume, an address and several other pieces of information. "How did you find all this?"_

"_Just remember, two wrongs don't make a right, kid." Nightwing said, ignoring Lanterns question. "Believe it or not, I know how you feel right now. But if you kill Harrington, it's only going to make things worse."_

_Lantern said nothing as he stared at the photograph of William Harrington. _

"_They're the killers, not you. Just remember that."_

Lanterns thoughts returned to the present as he landed on Harrington's front step. As he shattered the wooden door with a construct battering ram, Lantern hoped he could do what needed to be done without his feelings getting in the way.

If Kim hadn't been in such a sour mood, she probably would have laughed at her current situation. Her mind wandered back to Ron as she ducked underneath some throwing stars, which appeared to be made from tin foil and cardboard.

"You'll never stop me Kim Possible!" Frugal Lucre yelled from the other side of the dollar store.

Kim just shook her head and continued to maneuver her way through Lucre's cheap, homemade booby traps.

She hadn't talked to Ron hardly at all since his mom's death. It was the longest she could remember not talking to him, and it bothered her more then she let on. In a way, she felt it was her fault he was mad, but she was only trying to protect him from being hurt more. Ron was just being stubborn, like usual.

On top of that, Ron had apparently skipped town. Wade was even unsuccessful in trying to locate him for help with Kim's current mission.

'Not that I really need any help with this clown' Kim thought as she did a handspring over a rapidly deflating kiddy pool full of water and bear traps.

"Ack!" Lucre gasped as Kim grabbed him by the shirt collar.

"Alright pal, you've managed to ruin my night even further by dragging me out to Virginia to stop you from…. what exactly am I stopping you from?" Kim asked as she slapped a pair of restraints around Lucre's wrists.

"You have foiled my latest scheme for world domination." Lucre stated sticking his chin out. "By controlling all of the worlds dollar stores, I can undercut the competition and amass enough wealth to…"

"Whoa, ok, so heard enough." Kim sighed as she led Lucre out the front door.

"Harrington!" Lantern shouted as he made his way through the modest sized house. He finally found him, sitting behind a desk in what looked like a study.

A brief flash of fear passed over Harrington's face, before it was replaced with a look of smug indifference.

"So, Mr. Stoppable, you found me. Very impressive." He said, folding his hands on the desk. "What can I do for you?"

"Answers." Lantern said gruffly.

"Ah, the ever elusive answers that will give you vindication for killing me." Harrington said with a smirk. "I suppose I can oblige."

"The reason we sent Force after you was simple. We wanted the ring."

"Why?"

"For to long you super powered types have operated outside the government, above the law. Sure the government has had "super teams" and several Meta powered people still work in the employ of this nation." Harrington began. "But when the chance presented itself to acquire a Green Lantern ring, possibly the most powerful weapon in the universe, well…we couldn't pass that chance up."

"Hats off to you though kid, you gave us a lot more trouble then we expected."

"Why kill my mother though." Lantern asked, unmoving from the doorway.

"I can't really take the credit for that. That was all Force's idea. Though I guess, I did authorize him to use any means necessary. I guess he figured that would be an easy way to draw the big Green Lantern out and rattle him a bit."

Lantern said nothing, but took a couple steps forward, his anger causing his ring to glow brighter in the dimly lit room.

"I suppose this is the part where you kill me, avenging the loss of your mother?" Harrington asked, shifting slightly in his seat, moving his hands to rest on his lap.

Lantern stopped a few feet in front of the desk, and smirked slightly. He held out his hand to reveal a small tape recorder.

"No, this is where I take you in, and blow the lid off all your super secret organizations."

Harrington paled as he eyed the recorder in Lantern's hand.

"You wouldn't. You would reveal yourself." Harrington smiled, regaining his composure.

"No, I don't think I will. You're forgetting something else Harrington. Ron Stoppable was a hero to." Lantern said as his costume melted away to reveal Ron's usual mission garb. "And some clever editing will seal the deal with this tape."

"Do you think I won't spill to the authorities, to the press? I know who you are, and I can prove it."

"Can you?" Ron asked. "From what I understand, all of your research and work as been lost or destroyed. And do you really think your higher ups will go to bat for you, after all this?"

"It's over Harrington."

"Yes I suppose it is." Harrington said calmly, as his right hand shot out from underneath the desk. Ron's eyes caught the gleam of unmistakable metal in the hand.

"You'll never hit me." Ron said, his ring glowing, his eyes not leaving the gun in Harrington's hands.

"I don't have to." Harrington said softly, before pressing the gun to his temple, and pulling the trigger.

Ron turned away from the scene as he felt his stomach lurch. He walked out of the room, and continued outside into the chilly Alaskan night. Once outside he pulled a small black device from his pocket and pressed a button on it.

"Wade. I need a favor." Ron spoke into the device as Wade's young face filled the screen.

"Well guess who just called me?" Wades image asked Kim, as she rode in the back of a small private plane.

"Let me guess, someone with another mission?" Kim said with a grunt.

"Ron"

Kim straightened in her seat at the mention of her friend's name. "Where was he? What did he say? Is he all right? Why didn't he call me?"

Wade smiled at the rapid-fire line of questioning. "Alaska, not much, he's fine, and he needed my expertise."

"What?" Kim asked, totally lost.

"He followed a lead to Alaska, that took him to the guy that was in head of the department that killed his mom. Once there, he got a confession out of the guy, which Ron recorded. Pretty clever actually."

Kim smiled slightly, and then nodded for Wade to continue.

"Ron sent the recording to me for a little touching up, he went in as Green Lantern, but got the confession as Ron Stoppable. He's trying to keep the secret identity thing going this time."

"But what about this guy? Won't he tell?" Kim asked

"Well…"Wade looked down at his keyboard. "He shot himself once he found out Ron recorded the conversation."

"Oh," was all Kim said, as she sunk back down into her seat. "Poor Ron."

"Yeah…he is coming back to town tonight though." Wade offered.

"Maybe he will actually try to talk to me now." Kim said hopefully.

"I'm sure he will Kim." Wade said, before closing the connection.

Kim placed her Kimmunicator back in her pocket and tilted her head to look out the window of her plane. If Ron wasn't going to look her up, she decided, she would just have to find him herself.

Ron smiled to himself as he walked out of the dark alley a few buildings down from his hotel in Middleton. Despite everything that had happened he felt somewhat relieved that he had been able to right a wrong. While it didn't bring his mother back, Ron felt that he had honored her memory a little.

The chilly night air felt almost warm compared to the brisk Alaskan air he had recently returned from. If all had went well, the story of what really happened would appear in the morning editions of the newspapers.

The tape would show that Major Force picked out Mrs. Stoppable to draw out the Green Lantern. Something like a murder and half a house exploding tended to bring superheroes running. Given that the murder victim was a sidekick's mother, it was likely to bring Lantern running fast. The public didn't need to know that the sidekick's mother was also the Green Lanterns mother.

As Ron rode the elevator up to his floor in the hotel, he pondered what his next move should be. He hoped that what he had done tonight would help ease his father's apparent anger with him. He would also have to talk with Kim, after much thinking Ron had decided she was acting with his best interests in mind by holding back the cover up of his mother's murder.

Ron stopped outside his hotel room, and pulled his key card from his wallet. He slid it through the card reader and waited for the red light to turn green. When it didn't turn, he tried again. And again, and again. Confused, Ron knocked on the door, hoping his dad was home. After a moment of silence Ron decided to make his way back down to the front desk. Perhaps they would have a spare key or some way of letting him in.

"Any luck Wade?" Kim asked the boy genius who had a look of annoyance on his features.

"For the hundredth time in as many minutes, no Kim, I don't know where he is!"

"Well what about the…"

"The tracking chip is offline" Wade interrupted. "Probably shorted out by the ring's energy. And before you ask-again-he hasn't contacted me since earlier tonight."

"Fine…thanks Wade." Kim said as she closed the connection and placed the Kimmunicator in her pocket.

Kim leaned back in the seat of the family car. She had been scouring Middleton for the last hour, but had turned up neither hide nor hair of Ron Stoppable. After being informed that the Stoppables had checked out of their hotel, she had gone to all of Ron's usual haunts. All of them were Ronless. Not even a green streak had zipped across the sky.

"Where are you Ron?" Kim sighed as she put the car in drive, heading towards Bueno Nacho for one last look.

Ron walked the empty streets of downtown Middleton dimly aware of the Naco he was eating. He walked without purpose, just going wherever his legs would take him. As he took another bite of his Naco, he looked down at the piece of paper in his other hand. He looked over the words again, hoping they would have the answer he was looking for.

_Ronald,_

_I'm sorry, but I have to leave. Being here after what happened is too much for me. I waited for you as long as I could but planes don't wait forever. I'll be staying at the Plaza Hotel in New York when I arrive there. The number is at the bottom of this letter. I realize this is a lot to take it, and for that I'm sorry. If you wish to stay behind, I can understand, but I simply cannot. Please call me at the hotel and let me know what you've decided. _

_-Dad_

Ron had found the note in his duffel bag, which was left for him at the hotel front desk. His father at least had the courtesy to pack up all of his clothes in his duffel bag. The letter had brought up questions Ron had wanted to put off. He could stay with the Possible's to finish out school, he was sure of that. But what would he…

Ron's thoughts trailed off as he watched six masked men charging into the Middleton 24 Mart, the town's twenty four hour grocery store. Ron scarfed down the last of his naco and changed into his Lantern uniform as he zipped across the street.

Kim's Kimmunicator rang, as she pulled out of Bueno Nacho, defeated and ready to head home.

"Ron?" She asked hopefully.

"Sorry, Kim." Wade replied, typing on his computer. "A silent alarm just came in from the 24 Mart, your closer then any police patrols."

"Sure Wade, I'll be there in a jiff." The teen heroine said, instantly going into business mode, turning her car onto the street that would take her to the 24 Mart.

Green Lantern ducked as a haymaker sailed wildly over his head. He came up behind the assailant and caught him with an elbow to the back of the neck. Already off balance, the attacker stumbled forward and crashed head first into a soda cooler.

"Alright that's three down." Lantern said as he cracked his knuckles. "Who's next?"

Two of the remaining robbers looked at each other, and then back at Lantern. In an instant they went charging in the opposite direction, towards the front door.

"Ah, you guys are no fun." Lantern remarked as he formed a construct lasso.

Giving the lasso a twirl around his head, he flicked it out in the direction of the runners. It caught around their ankles, halting their progress and planting them face first onto the hard marble floor.

With a satisfied nod, Green Lantern turned to find the final robber, only to find himself face to face with the barrel of a 9mm pistol. On the other end of the pistol was the final robber, a nervous smile visible beneath his ski mask.

"Don't move man, or I'll do ya right here. Let us walk out of here, and you walk outta here to man."

Lantern began to run down his options while slowly raising his hands. He was so focused on his thoughts and the gun; he didn't hear the soft twang from the back of the store.

A split second later the final robber was down, a large bruise already forming on his face from where the boxing glove had struck him.

"What the hell?" Lantern muttered as he picked up the object that had felled his attacker. It appeared to be a large green boxing glove, attached to the end of an arrow.

Lantern followed the trajectory of the arrow to the back of the store, in front of the beer cooler. Standing there was a man who seemed straight out of the pages of a Robin Hood novel.

Dressed from head to toe in green was the hero Green Arrow. His yellow goatee and mustache offset his pointed green cap, which he tipped to the Lantern. He then slung his bow over his shoulder and walked forward towards the awestruck Green Lantern.

"Green Arrow" The man said extending his hand to the Lantern who took it graciously.

"Green Lantern. Thanks for the save." Lantern responded

"Sure. There someplace we can talk, somewhere away from prying ears?" Arrow asked, indicating the wide-eyed store clerk who had finally risen from his hiding spot behind the counter.

"Sure." Lantern said, leading the way towards the door.

Before they could reach the door Kim Possible came bursting in, nearly tripping over the two mooks who had tried to run for it.

"What the…" she began before noticing the two emerald clad warriors making their way towards her.

"Green Lantern! I've been looking everywhere for you." Kim exclaimed, nodding politely at the Green Arrow, who doffed his cap towards her.

"Some other time Miss Possible." Lantern said with a smile, "we'll catch up after you handle something for me."

"What?" Kim said completely confused. Lantern pointed over her shoulder towards the police cars that were approaching the store.

"I'm not your P.R girl…" Kim started, but turned around to find the two gone. She sighed noticing the front door swinging shut, and the police making their way up from their squad cars.

"So what's up arrow buddy?" Lantern asked as he deposited himself and Green Arrow on a nearby rooftop.

"Where the hell is Hal?" Arrow demanded, his voice considerably angrier then before. "And what are you doing running around in a knock off of his pajamas?"

"Say huh?" Lantern asked, furrowing his brow.

"You heard me kid." Arrow growled folding his arms over his chest.

"Jordan?" Lantern asked, realizing whom Green Arrow meant. "I don't know, I've never met him."

Green Arrow raised an eyebrow at this, and then scowled at Green Lantern.

"So that's how it is now? Those damn guardians just pick some kid to replace Hal; don't even let the man pick his own replacement like he did with Gardner and Stewart."

"After what happened, I wouldn't let him pick his replacement either."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean? After what happened?" Arrow said, growing angrier by the minute.

"Hal Jordan snapped man. He went crazy."

"What?" Arrow practically yelled, closing the distance between the two heroes, grabbing Lantern by the front of the shirt.

"Hal Jordan killed half the Green Lantern Corps. Left the rest powerless. I'm the only one left." Lantern said calmly.

Green Arrow released Lantern and took a few steps back shaking his head. "No, Hal would never do that. He's not a killer."

"The guardians wouldn't give him the power to rebuild Coast City." Lantern began slowly. "He snapped. I'm sorry Arrow. You were friends?"

"The best…" Green Arrow trailed off.

After a few moments of silence Arrow walked towards the end of the building and pulled an arrow from his quiver, and knocked it in his bow. He turned and silently regarded Lantern before firing his arrow, which had a jump line attached to it. He swung off the roof without another word.

"That was different." Green Lantern remarked to himself, as he turned back to see Kim finishing up talking to the police. Seeing her brought everything back he was thinking about earlier. With a last glance towards the direction Green Arrow had gone, Lantern took off towards Kim's car.

After what seemed like hours of questions Kim finally made her way back to her car. She decided in the future it might be easier to take credit for Ron's deeds. The police seemed to be a little skeptical of the Green Lantern after the incident with Ron's mom.

The general consensus seemed to be that big time superheroes attracted big time trouble. Kim had almost argued with them over that point, but she didn't see any good coming from that, and she could almost agree with them.

So lost in her thoughts was Kim, she didn't notice the blonde haired boy sitting in the front passenger seat of her car as she climbed in.

"Hey." Ron said quietly as Kim climbed in and shut the door.

She jumped visibly at the sound of Ron's voice, which brought a smile to his face.

Kim glared hard at Ron, causing his smile to fade. She quickly let up and gave a slight smile of her own.

"You so owe me for that over there." She said, motioning towards the departing police. "You're not exactly held in high regard with the local law enforcement these days."

"I can imagine." Ron said lowering his head to stare down at the shifter.

"I'm sorry Ron." Kim said placing her hand on his leg. "I didn't mean…"

"It's alright." Ron said looking back at Kim. "I know you didn't mean anything by it. Can we go somewhere to talk?"

"I thought you'd never ask." Kim smiled, turning the car on.

Ten minutes later the two heroes sat on the swing set of an empty playground at a preschool long forgotten by most.

"Brings back memories doesn't it?" Ron asked swaying gently in his swing.

"Sure does." Kim smiled as her eyes wandered across they playground to the spot where her and Ron met all those years ago.

"I'm sorry for blowing up at you before." Ron said, abruptly ending the reminiscing and beginning the serious talk.

"It's my fault…I should have told you." Kim said apologetically.

"You were just doing what you thought was right. Kim…"

"What is it Ron?" Kim asked, slowing her light swinging down, worried at the tone of Ron's voice.

Ron took a deep breath and continued, not looking up from the ground.

"My Dad left for New York this evening. He said he couldn't stand to be here anymore."

Kim's eyes went wide at this revelation. She had expected changes were in store for the Stoppable family, but moving to New York caught her by surprise.

"What are you going to do?" she asked slowly, afraid of the answer.

"I'm going to go with him. I pretty much have to." Ron replied

"What about school? You can stay with us for the rest of the year, and the summer."

Ron looked at Kim for a moment, and then returned his gaze to the ground.

"No Kim, I can't do that."

"Why not? We can get an apartment next fall at Upperton U. Ron, you can't move to New York."

"No Kim, it's exactly what I have to do." Ron started as he stood. "I've been thinking about it for a while now, since what happened with my mother and what happened today. I was planning on moving, I guess this just moves it up a bit."

"But why?"

"How do you think Force knew where to find me?" Ron said, turning to face Kim. "And Green Arrow tonight. He wasn't just passing through."

"So you're moving away so superheroes and villains don't find you?"

"No, I'm moving so they don't find you. Or Monique, or your parents, or Wade, or anyone else I care about." Ron sighed. "It's easy enough to track Green Lantern here, and I'm sure it wouldn't take a rocket scientist to connect Ron Stoppable and Green Lantern, especially if I keep running around with you."

"Ron, I can handle myself. And if they come after our friends, we'll save them. It's what we do, save people." Kim said, slightly angry. "I don't need you moving away just to protect me."

"Really Kim? Like we saved my mom? And how would you have stopped Force if I hadn't recovered." Ron said folding his arms over his chest. "The people that could come after me are a little more powerful then the guys we usually fight."

Kim's angry silence was something Ron would never forget.

"Look…I didn't mean it like that." Ron offered softly.

"I know exactly how you meant it Ron." Kim said angrily as she stood. "You've got your powerful ring, and your super powered villains now. So I'm second rate."

"I didn't say that."

"You didn't have to." She huffed as she stomped past Ron.

"Kim, wait." Ron grabbed Kim's arm spinning her around.

"No Ron. Not for you." Kim said, jerking her arm away. "You're disguising this as trying to protect me and everyone else, but that's not what this is about. You want to go out on your own and be a big time super hero on your own. Admit it."

"Kim, that's the farthest thing from my mind."

"Then stay. Continue to be my partner."

"Did you not listen to what I just said? I don't want to put you or anyone else in danger by associating with me."

"Fine, oh noble one. Please do protect me with your magical ring."

"Kim don't do this…"

"You did this Ron." Kim said, tears forming in her eyes. "Bye" she muttered as she turned and ran to her car.

Ron watched Kim climb into her car, and go tearing out of the parking lot. After what felt like an eternity he changed into his Green Lantern uniform and took off towards New York.

'That went well' he thought as he left Middleton for the final time

Thats the end of the first arc of this Green Lantern story. Sorry it took so long to get this chapter out. There werea couple of spots I got hung up on. Hope ya'll enjoyed it, and hopefully the next chapter will be out quicker then this one. Dont forget to review, thanks.

R


	6. Old Friends, Old Enemies Pt 1

Old Friends, Old Enemies Part 1

"Stoppable?"

Ron turned at the sound of his name, scanning the small pizza shop for the person who had called his name. His mind tried to place the voice, but was turning up blanks. In his 6 months in New York he hadn't made very many friends, for one reason or another.

The only people he ever associated with were other people in his college courses or study groups, and he doubted they would call out to him outside of school.

"Over here dummy!" Another voice called out, and this time Ron was able to find the owner.

At a table in the front of the pizza shop sat two attractive females about Ron's age. One was African American with long dark hair, and deep dark eyes to match. Her tight fitting tank top and jeans led Ron to believe she had been poured into them this morning.

The other girl, seated across from the table from the first wore an equally tight fitting baby t-shirt and jeans. Her hair seemed shorter then Ron remembered, but it could have been because it was pulled in a ponytail through the back of a well-worn New York Yankees cap.

Ron collected himself from his momentary shock to smile and wave at the two. After receiving the slice of pizza he ordered he made his way over to the table to say hello to two people he didn't think he'd ever see again.

"Monique, Bonnie." Ron smiled as he plopped down in the empty third chair at their table.

Monique reached across the table to give Ron a hug, which he gratefully returned.

"So this is where you ran off to?" she said with a smile. "We all wondered where you went."

"At least the people that cared anyway." Bonnie snorted.

"Nice to see you haven't changed." Ron said biting into his pizza.

To Ron's surprise Monique and Bonnie both laughed, and Bonnie reached over and slapped Ron's arm.

"Just kidding loser."

"I believe you'll find Bonnie has actually changed a lot." Monique said with a smile. "She decided to leave all her petty high school insecurities back in Middleton."

"I learned pretty quick my attitude didn't fly outside of high school." Bonnie shrugged.

"I wish you would have learned it sooner, my self esteem could have spared the abuse." Ron smiled, which drew a chuckle from the girls. "So what are you guys doing in the big city?"

"Fashion school." Monique answered. "We got to talking at a party after graduation, found out we were both coming up here to the same school, and decided to get an apartment. So here we are. What about you?"

"After my mom died, my dad and I came here." Ron said in between bites of his pizza. "School let me mail in the last couple weeks more or less because of everything that happened. Now I'm going to school part time at a community college."

"We…well I wanted to get a hold of you after graduation. But no one knew where you went." Monique said

"Yea, you missed some fun open houses." Bonnie added with a grin.

"Sorry…everything just happened so fast. Kim knew I came here."

At the mention of Kim's name Bonnie and Monique's faces contorted into an expression Ron couldn't quite read.

"What?"

The girls looked at each other for a second before Bonnie finally spoke up.

"After you left, K wasn't exactly…talkative on the subject of you."

"Yea, a whole 'I don't know and I don't care' attitude." Monique added.

Ron nodded and took a long sip of his soda. He couldn't say he was really surprised. He and Kim hadn't parted on the best of terms, and any attempt he made to get in touch with her over the last few months had failed. He only knew how she was doing through Wade, who he still worked with on occasion.

"What happened with you two?" Monique asked. "You went from being inseparable to her freaking out every time someone asked about you."

"I don't know." Ron answered half honestly. "I guess she didn't really agree with my reasons for leaving."

"She would get mad over something she couldn't control." Bonnie huffed.

Monique shook her head, and Ron raised an eyebrow and half smiled at Bonnie, who crossed her arms and raised her nose.

"Well a girl can't change _everything_ about herself now can she?"

The three laughed and ate pizza in relative silence for a few minutes before Bonnie grabbed Ron's arm and squeezed.

"You're looking good Stoppable. Where do you work out?"

"Oh…all over really"

Before either girl could respond to his statement, a loud piercing beep cut through the pizza shop. The trio turned and looked at the small TV mounted over the cash register. The screen had just switched from the emergency broadcast signal to a shot of a reporter somewhere in New York.

"Citizens are being advised to stay away from the lower Manhattan region, as the supervillian known as Dr. Light has begun rampaging through the streets after a failed bank robbery…"

Ron sighed and stood up from the table.

"I hate to cut and run gals, but I've uh…got a class to get to." Ron lied with a smile. "Good seeing you guys though."

Ron turned and began to jog out of the pizza shop when he stopped. It went against the very reasons he had moved to New York…but it was so nice talking to people he knew again. Who knew trying to protect everyone around you would be so lonely.

Turning back to the table he pulled a pen from his pocket and jotted down his phone number on a napkin and tossed it on the table.

"It's my cell phone number." He explained. "Give me a call sometime. It would be nice to hang out with people I know again."

"You got it cutie." Monique smiled as she folded the napkin and slid it into her pocket.

"Awesome…see ya later." Ron winked as he turned and continued his jog out of the pizza shop.

"Bye" the girls chimed in unison before turning back to each other.

"He is looking good these days." Monique said as she finished her soda.

"Totally…but who has class on a Sunday?" Bonnie wondered aloud.

"So are you a doctor of light, or is Light your last name?" Green Lantern inquired as he deflected a blast of light with a construct shield.

When Lantern had arrived on the scene, he had found Dr. Light trapped inside a bank by police. Despite being cornered, Light's energy blasts were making his capture difficult. He was periodically firing out the front of the window, destroying some cars and causing major property damage to the buildings across the street.

"Impudent child!" Light yelled as he fired another energy blast, which Lantern dodged easily.

"So let me get this straight. You break into a bank on a Sunday, when there is no one here with the safe codes." Lantern began, constructing a green safe to drop on Light from above. "And then, realizing your not a safe cracker, you just decide to go on your merry way. Upon trying to leave do you realize you've tripped the silent alarm, bringing half of New York's finest running."

Light moaned rubbing the back of his head as he struggled to his feet, the construct safe having found its mark.

"Which brings us to our current stand off, which by the way interrupted my lunch with two very attractive girls, thank you." Lantern finished as he grabbed Light by the shirt collar.

Light tried to focus a glare at Lantern but was apparently to dizzy to do so, this of course brought a chuckle from the Green Lantern.

"You're a joke you know that?" Lantern smiled as a construct hand appeared in front of Lights face and flicked him, knocking him unconscious.

Lantern tossed Lights unconscious form over his shoulder and walked out the front door of the bank. He was met with applause from the small crowd that had gathered despite the police barricades.

"We'll take him from here Lantern." A young officer from the New York meta division said as he approached.

"He's all yours pal" Lantern said, handing the villain over, and watching as they applied special restraints that would counteract Dr. Light's powers.

"Thanks again G.L." A police officer said, extending his hand, which Lantern shook.

"Just glad I could help. Have a wonderful day folks." Lantern said with a wave as he took to the sky and made his way home.

The planet Qward

Antimatter universe.

Located in the antimatter universe, the planet Qward is home to the Qwardians. Just as the antimatter universe is the opposite to the regular universe, so are the Qwardians to the Guardians. When the Green Lantern Sinestro was banished from the Corps. to the antimatter universe, the Qwardians made him their champion. Giving him a yellow power ring, Sinestro went from being one of Hal Jordan's greatest allies, to his greatest enemy.

Footsteps echoed throughout the empty halls of the main building on Qward. Turning the corner, the female Qwardian spotted her target and approached him.

"The weapon is ready."

"Good, prepare for its transfer to earth."

"To whom shall the honor of bearing it go?"

"The new Green Lantern, the last Green Lantern, has an equal. He is his opposite. Even more so then Jordan and Sinestro were. Give him the ring, with the orders to destroy the Green Lantern."

"I know of whom you speak. The Green Lanterns time is coming."

Ron walked through the front door of his apartment, and tossed his book bag to the ground. Locating his easy chair amid the mess, he followed the lead of his book bag and tumbled into the chair.

With a sigh, he scanned his apartment. It was a modest apartment, one bedroom and bathroom, with the kitchen and living room basically being the same room. Judging by the amount of laundry, dishes, books, and boxes that littered the room, one would assume Ron shared the tenant with several other people.

After living with his father for a couple months, the two found the situation was becoming a bit uncomfortable. They had a good enough relationship, but Mrs. Stoppable was really the glue of the family. Not wanting to grow further apart then they had, Mr. Stoppable decided it might be best for Ron to move out.

Mr. Stoppable paid the rent and utilities for the apartment, but Ron had to fend for his own food, clothing and whatever else he might need. The deal had pleased Ron, and he got a part time job at the campus bookstore.

The only downside was, between school, work and superheroing, there was little time left for cleaning, and unpacking. As was the norm, Ron considered cleaning and unpacking. But as usual, fatigue won out, and Ron felt his eyelids drift downward for a much needed nap.

The piercing chime of his cell phone jolted Ron back to the land of the awake. Groaning he reached into his pocket and produced the small device.

"I've really got to download some better ringers", he muttered, looking at a number he didn't recognize on the caller ID screen.

"Y'llo" Ron said into the phone pressed to his ear.

"Hey Ron, you home?" A girls voice came over the line.

"Uh…yea."

"Great! Mind if Bonnie and I come up?" The caller asked, revealing her identity.

"Monique, uh sure, when should I expect you?" Ron replied, glancing frantically at the mess around him.

"We're on our way up now. Apartment 15 right?"

"Um, you betcha!" Ron said, springing to his feet, now in a complete panic. "See ya in a couple."

Dropping the phone to the chair Ron took a calming breath. Boxes that were scattered throughout the room, were suddenly encased in green energy, and stacked along one wall. A tiny construct bulldozer began plowing across the floor, collecting dirty laundry and pushing it through the bedroom doorway into a pile in the bedroom.

There was a knock on the door, just as construct hands finished stacking newspapers and magazines in an empty box, and textbooks on the coffee table.

"Coming!" Ron called walking towards the door, kissing his ring. "At least it's somewhat presentable now."

"Ladies." Ron said, opening the door in an overly exaggerated motion, waving them in with his free arm, and bowing slightly.

"Bonnie, tip the doorman." Monique said, hanging her purse on Ron's outstretched arm. "And you, alert the lord of this castle we have arrived."

"Everyone's a comedian." Ron smiled, as he caught the penny Bonnie flipped his way.

"Well I'm impressed Stoppable. I half expected this place to be a complete disaster." Bonnie said, giving the room an approving nod.

"I'm just full of surprises Bon." Ron shrugged. "And speaking of surprises…"

Bonnie and Monique looked at each other and smiled.

"We looked you up in the student directory on campus." Bonnie explained.

"Before you saw us the other day, you just looked so lonely." Monique said with a sad smile. "So instead of an impersonal phone call, we decided to drop by and surprise you."

"Well you definitely got the surprise part right." Ron said with a classic goofy grin. It seemed like forever ago that he had actually had a conversation with friends, people that knew him. If only Kim…

"So are we going to get the grand tour?" Monique asked, interrupting Ron's thoughts.

"Well there's not much to tour really. Bathroom behind door number one, bedroom behind door number two." Ron said motioning towards the two doors. "And as you can tell here, by my lovely dingy linoleum, this is the kitchen."

"But the crown jewel of course is my window." Ron smiled, leading the girls towards the room's only window. "Beyond its dusty glass pane is a lovely view of a…"

Before Ron could finish his sentence, the window, and the wall around it exploded. Ron reacted quickly, and turned away from the explosion, drawing the girls in close to him away from flying debris.

"What the hell?" Ron muttered as he turned towards his newly remodeled window. His eyes widened as dust cleared and the source of the explosion was revealed.

Lord Montgomery Fiske, known to the world as Monkey Fist filled the opening in the wall. In Ron's sidekick days, Monkey Fist had been his arch foe. He hadn't seen the genetically enhanced villain since several months before leaving Middleton. From what Wade had told him, Kim had not encountered Fiske much either.

An old foe coming back for revenge wasn't really what bothered Ron though. The two girls hiding behind his back, each peeking around an arm bothered him a bit, but he wasn't to concerned, Monkey Fist was most likely here for him. What really bothered Ron though, was the fact that Monkey Fist was floating in the space outside his window, with a yellow glow around him. That yellow glow was emanating from the power ring the monkey master wore on the index finger of his right paw.

"It's been a while Stoppable." Monkey Fist sneered.

"Not long enough fur ball." Ron said clenching his fists, hoping that Fiske's ring was just a flight ring, or a force field generator.

That theory was quickly shot down though as the room was suddenly filled with several yellow construct monkey ninjas, who began to work their way toward Ron and the girls.

"Well, shit." Ron sighed.

To be continued…

A/N: Well after another long break here's an update. And yes I know, Kim didn't appear in this chapter at all. She'll more then likely turn up next chapter, but this is a Ron story so Kim's appearances may be sparse for a while. As always I own nothing, all characters are the property of Disney or D.C. Comics. Also as always, thanks for reading, and please review.

R


	7. Old Friends, Old Enemies Pt 2

Chapter 7

Ron crouched slightly into a defensive fighting stance as the construct monkey ninja's began to close in on him and the girls.

"Go, run." He instructed them, backing up slightly.

"We're not leaving you here, there's tons of those yellow dudes, you don't stand a chance." Monique protested, standing tall next to Ron, her sense of confidence from a mission or two with Kim running a little high.

"I said run." Ron instructed again, his voice deepening slightly. "I can handle this, you two will get hurt."

As if to emphasize his point one of the ninjas launched itself in a flying kick, headed straight for Bonnie. As she threw her arms up over her face and shrieked, Ron caught the monkey by the ankle and threw him back towards the group.

"Go!" he shouted again.

This time the girls listened as Bonnie grabbed Monique's arm and the two high tailed it out the door. Once they were out of the apartment and down a couple flights of stairs Monique put on the brakes and pulled out her cell phone.

"P-Police?" Bonnie asked, still a bit shaken from her close encounter of the monkey kind.

"No." Monique replied as she punched in a number memorized from late night conversations about clothes and boys.

"I'm calling Kim."

"I've gotta tell you Fiske, this is a new trick for you." Ron said as he ducked and dodged the strikes from the construct ninjas. "Usually its monkey artifact this, monkey artifact that. I would never expect a power ring from you."

"Well we're all full of surprises aren't we Stoppable." Monkey Fist said with a smirk. "Or do you prefer Green Lantern these days."

Ron's eyes went wide with surprise at Monkey Fists statement, and several tiny yellow fists struck their mark before Ron could recover.

"Don't act surprised old friend. Ever since the day you stole my mystical monkey power for yourself we have been connected deeper then you realize. Not to mention, this ring is useful for more then just yellow monkey ninjas." Monkey Fist said.

"Fair enough. Then lets knock off this tired old song and dance routine and settle this man to man. Or man to monkey as the case may be." Ron growled, as the air around him crackled with energy and his Green Lantern costume formed into place.

"Fool." Fist snarled, as the monkey ninjas vanished. "Your arrogance shall be your undoing."

Green Lanterns response came in the form of an emerald energy blast that sent the monkey master flying back through the hole he made in Ron's wall.

"Booyah", Lantern muttered under his breath as he followed Monkey Fist out of the hole, ready to finish the battle before it had a chance to really begin.

"Possible residence."

"Kim! Thank god your home!" Monique yelled into the phone.

"Whoa, Monique calm down. What's the sitch?" Kim asked, holding the phone slightly away from her ear.

"Its Ron, Kim, he's in trouble!"

"Ron?" Kim asked, her voice growing icy.

"Me and Bonnie were over at his apartment when all of a…"

"Wait, you and Bonnie? Ron's apartment?"

"Me and Bonnie are living together, we ran into Ron the other day and stopped to see him." Monique said, talking so fast she almost didn't notice that Kim didn't seem concerned about Ron's safety. "But anyways, that monkey dude came blasting in through the wall!"

"Monkey Fist?"

"Yes! Kim you've gotta get up here and help Ron out."

"Ron can take care of himself Monique"

There was a slight scuffling noise, and a new voice took over on Monique's end of the line.

"Listen K, I don't know what went down between you two, but you need to quit being a self centered bitch and come help your be….aiiieee!"

"Bonnie? Monique?" Kim shouted into the phone before she realized the line was dead.

She hung up the phone and glanced over to her computer desk, where her mission clothes were draped over the back of her chair, and her Kimmunicator sat on her desk. She stared at the device for a moment before her gaze drifted upwards to the shelf above the desk. In the center of the shelf was the only picture of her and Ron she still displayed, from their first day of high school.

After a moment's hesitation, she crossed the small distance and picked up her Kimmunicator.

"Wade," she said, activating the device. "I need a ride to New York."

"Damn it!" Green Lantern shouted to himself.

After following Monkey Fist out of his apartment building, the battle had promptly continued above and around the structure. Unfortunately for Green Lantern this meant errant energy blasts were causing damage to things other then his apartment. One such blast from Monkey Fists ring had dislodged several bricks from the top of the building. Bricks that had tumbled to the street below, heading towards the very people he had chased out of his apartment to protect.

Lantern had been quick with a protective construct umbrella, but some debris had gotten through. A medium sized piece of brick had struck Bonnie in the hand she held a cell phone in.

And in yet another turn of bad luck, while Lantern was trying to protect Monique and Bonnie, Monkey Fist struck him square in the back ring aided flying kick. The force of the blow sent Lantern to the ground, crashing near Monique and Bonnie.

"Green Lantern?" Monique cried in surprise from her position near Bonnie, who was on one knee holding her left hand, which was bleeding, and beginning to swell.

"Hi" Lantern mumbled as he picked himself up off the ground. He did his best to avoid eye contact with the two, and lowered his voice when he spoke to the girls. "You two need to get out of here. Take her to a hospital."

As he finished, he turned and began to fly back towards the roof, where he could see Monkey Fist preparing another strike. He glanced over his shoulder to see Monique leading Bonnie away. At the same moment Monique turned over her shoulder and shouted up to Green Lantern.

"Don't worry GL, helps on the way!"

'Bonnie must have been calling the police' Lantern thought as he deflected several construct throwing stars. 'But why would she tell me…oh no…she called Kim!'

'I've got to wrap this up before she gets here'

Blocking the throwing stars with a shield on his left arm, Lantern formed a bolo in his right hand. After a couple twirls, he launched the construct weapon, which wrapped its self around Monkey Fists body, breaking his concentration. With the barrage of throwing stars stopped, Lantern zoomed in and landed a quick one-two combination to the monkey masters gut and head.

"Very impressive Stoppable." Monkey Fist began, breaking the bolo and wiping a bit of blood from his lip. "You seem to be quite handy with your ring. It's a shame you never put such effort into harnessing your monkey abilities. Within you is a well of untapped power, and to see it unused disgusts me."

"Well, I guess that makes us even then, because you're a well of genetically altered freakiness." Lantern retorted. "And that sir, disgusts me."

With a monkey like hoot, Monkey Fist launched an energy blast directly at Lanterns head, who barely had enough time to get a shield up. Even with the shield, the force of the blast was enough to drive Lantern backwards several feet.

"Interesting," Monkey Fist mused as he created a yellow katana blade and approached Lantern. "A Green Lanterns one weakness is supposed to be the color yellow. Hence, the yellow power ring. Yet here we are, and you show no signs of vulnerability to the color."

"I guess I'm just all kinds of special Monty." Lantern replied as he fashioned a sword of his own, one that bared a striking resemblance to the Lotus Blade.

"Cute" Monkey Fist smirked. "En guard!"

Lantern blocked Fist's over head strike and retaliated with a kick to his stomach. Using the space he created Lantern lunged with his blade, which Fist easily deflected. The lunge left Lantern wide open, and Monkey Fist made him pay with a palm strike to the face. The blow caught Lantern square, and he stumbled back barely getting his sword up to block another attack from Fist.

The mid air dance continued for what seemed like hours. Attack after attack was launched, and nearly each one was blocked. However the glancing blows that slipped past the combatant's defenses were beginning to take their toll, and the two separated, and began to circle each other.

"What do you say we call it a day Monty?" Lantern huffed. "I'll go downstairs and try to fix my wall, and you…you go turn yourself into the nearest prison."

"I find that as unlikely as you giving up your awful jokes." Fist panted, feeling the combined exhaustion of the battle and of the exertion of will power the ring required.

"Jokes? I was serious." Lantern said, mock offended. "To think that I would joke, at a time like this."

"Idiot." Monkey fist growled as he charged at Lantern, sword held high.

"Ow! C'mon Doc, I would like the use of that hand again someday." Bonnie glowered at the doctor who was working on her injured hand in the back of an ambulance.

The girls had made it a couple buildings away from the fight when police sirens had gone speeding past them heading towards the fight. The ambulance was on their heels, and Monique was able to flag it down for her injured friend.

"Once again Ms. Rockwaller, I apologize." The middle aged male paramedic said, without a hint of regret in his voice. "But stitches do tend to hurt a little bit."

"Your just lucky its not broken Bon", Monique said from her position leaning against the back door. "You would have a hell of a time passing drawing with a broken hand."

"Yea, real luck-OW! Now you did that on purpose!" Bonnie yelled as the paramedic pulled the stitches a little harder then he should have.

"There Ms. Rockwaller all stitched up." The paramedic said, glaring at the teenager. "And please, for the sake of all in my profession, do keep from getting injured again."

Bonnie harrumphed and stormed out of the back of the ambulance. Monique mouthed an apology to the doctor, and then turned after her friend and roommate.

"Where do you think your going?" she called, racing up to Bonnie's side.

"Back to the fight, where do you think I'm going?" Bonnie replied, as if Monique had just asked to worlds dumbest question.

"We should be going in the opposite direction. Ron and the Green Lantern told us to get out of there. We almost got killed as it is!" Monique argued.

"But what about Ron?" Bonnie said stopping to turn to Monique. "I didn't see him fighting that Monkey dude. He might be hurt, or trapped, or worse."

Before Monique could respond she spotted someone running towards them out of the corner of her eye.

"Kim!" Monique said turning towards her old friend.

"Monique." Kim said with a smile, grabbing the girl in a tight embrace. Aside from Ron, Monique had been Kim's best friend in high school. They had grown apart after graduation, with Kim staying in Middleton, and Monique moving to New York, but Kim still considered Monique to be like the sister she never had.

"Bonnie." Kim said politely, but coldly as she pulled away from Monique's hug.

"Kim." Bonnie replied with the same tone of voice.

"So what's the sitch? I got here as quick as I could." Kim asked.

"Well, like we told you on the phone, Monkey Fist showed up and started wrecking stuff." Monique began. "Ron shooed us out of his apartment, and started fighting these yellow monkey ninjas that Fist brought. We went outside to call you, and then Green Lantern showed up. That's when we got cut off."

To emphasize Monique's story, Bonnie held up her stitched and swollen hand.

"Debris" she said.

"Ouch." Kim winced at the mangled hand. "Where are they now?"

"There would be a good guess." Bonnie said, pointing to the sky with her good hand. Above the buildings green and yellow energy blasts filled the sky.

"Good point." Kim said, squinting slightly to try and make out the two figures.

"We were just heading back that way to find Ron." Bonnie said glancing at Monique, who shrugged.

"Find Ron?" Kim asked, confused.

"Yea, we're afraid something might have happened to him, he wasn't fighting alongside Lantern." Monique explained.

"Oh…right." Kim said, realizing they didn't know Ron and Green Lantern were one and the same. She then mentally scolded herself for almost blowing Ron's secret, and for thinking he might have told Bonnie and Monique.

"Look, I'll go find Ron, and help GL, but you two have got to stay here." Kim said firmly. "You're already hurt Bonnie, and its way to dangerous out there, ok?"

"Fine…" they grumbled in unison.

"Great, I'll be back as soon as this is over." Kim said turning and running towards the battle.

"Ever get that feeling your 12 again, and you keep getting left out of all the good stuff?" Monique wondered out loud as they watched Kim depart.

The two warriors circled each other on the roof of Ron's apartment. Green Lanterns costume had several tears, and blood flowed freely from a number of cuts on his body. Monkey Fist was in no better shape, with the left sleeve of his black gi missing completely, and a rapidly swelling black eye.

Just as the two were about to engage each other again, a third party burst from the roof access door. Kim Possible skidded to a halt a few feet from Lantern and Monkey Fist, forming a triangle on the rooftop.

As Kim launched into her "surrender or pay" speech to Monkey Fist, Lantern silently cursed himself. His inability to defeat Monkey Fist had given Kim enough time to reach the scene. Normally, Ron would be pleased to have her help with Fiske; however, Fiske with a power ring was a different story.

"Kim", Ron called out with a voice raspy and tired. "Get out of here."

"I can handle this clown Lantern." Kim replied coolly, not looking at GL.

"Well isn't this precious!" Monkey Fist crowed. "The pretender and the teen hero, together again one last time. I must thank you Kim Possible; you have saved me a trip to Middleton. Your death shall come here instead."

"I don't think so Monty." Kim said, taking a fighting stance, then rapidly closing the distance between them.

"Kim! No, he's got a-"

Before Green Lantern could finish his warning, Kim had launched herself into a flying kick at the monkey masters head. Had the kick landed, Monkey Fists head would have been ringing for weeks. A yellow brick wall that appeared in front of Fiske prevented that however.

Kim screamed in pain as her foot slammed into the structure, twisting her ankle. A construct green mattress cushioned her fall to the roof. As soon as she hit, Lantern was at her side, using a construct bulldozer blade to push Monkey Fist away.

"Ring, he's got a ring like mine." Green Lantern said, his voice soft. "Are you ok?"

"Ankle…ow." Kim grunted rubbing at her ankle.

"C'mon, we've got to get you out of here." Green Lantern said, bending over to pick up Kim.

He saw the flash of yellow out of the corner of his eye before Kim could warn him. Turning he managed to get a shield up, with crackled with energy as Monkey Fists blast struck it.

"This ends now, Stoppable!" Monkey Fist yelled, pouring more willpower into his beam.

Green Lantern grunted as his heels dug into the surface of the roof. He willed more life into his energy beam, and gained a little ground but not much.

"Can…you make it to th-the doorway?" Green Lantern grunted, sweat pouring down his face.

"I'm not leaving you here to die Ron." Kim replied, trying to stand on her ankle.

"If you don't we'll both die"

"We used to be a team Ron. That's how we always won." Kim said, as she plopped back to the roof, unable to put any weight on her ankle. Ignoring Lanterns confused look, Kim removed her glove and placed it on Lanterns ring hand.

"We may not be a team now, but we can still win like one."

Kim closed her eyes and focused on the ring and its energy. Ron's words from months ago echoed in her mind.

"_Pretty much anything I can think of I can make. I basically just will it to life." _

She focused on the energy beam and felt a strange sensation run through her body.

Ron's eyes went wide as he felt the same sensation run through his body and through the ring. Realizing what Kim was doing, he refocused himself, and their energy beam began driving Monkey Fist back.

Suddenly, with a loud flash of light, and a boom that would make the loudest thunder clap seem quiet the battle was over.

Monique squinted her eyes to the rooftop to try and get a sense of what was going on. The bright flashes of yellow and green were gone, but it their place was a steadily increasing greenish yellow glow.

"The police have gotten everyone out of the building." Bonnie commented, watching the police move the confused inhabitants of the apartment building away.

"Find Ron?" Monique asked, turning to her friend.

"No dice." Bonnie sighed. "He must be up there with Kim and GL."

"I hope he's alright." Monique said, as she turned back to the building.

Before Bonnie could say anything else, both girls were knocked to the ground by a shockwave that shattered most of the windows in the surrounding buildings and automobiles.

Monique rolled to her side to look at Bonnie, who was saying something. Monique knew she was speaking because her lips were moving, but she couldn't hear a word of it.

Placing a finger to her ear, Monique felt a small trickle of blood. Bonnie did the same, and her eyes widened as she continued to speak, a bit more frantically now.

"…ell was that?" She said, as words finally came out of her moving lips.

Monique simply shrugged and turned back to the rooftop, which was now eerily calm, and void of light.

Green Lantern groaned as he opened his eyes. He was alive, that much he was sure of. There was no way being dead could hurt so much. Using some of the little strength he had left, he pushed himself up from his stomach to a kneeling position. Once he got his bearings he noticed Kim laying next to him, her body unmoving.

"KP!" he yelped, surprised at how much his words hurt his ears.

He crawled quickly to her side, where he could see that she was in fact breathing, and starting to come around.

"Where…Ron?" Kim choked out as she opened her eyes.

"Shh..it's ok Kim, it's over." GL assured her. To assure himself he looked across the roof to the limp form of Monkey Fist. "It's over."

"How do you do it?" Kim said, her voice a bit scratchy as sat up slightly, before stopping and laying back down holding her head in her hands. "Oh man."

"Do what?" Lantern asked, his confusion bringing a smile to Kim's aching lips.

"Use the ring…feels like I haven't slept or ate in days. Every time?"

This time it was Green Lanterns turn to smile. Kim had poured every ounce of energy and willpower she had into the ring. Without it, the day surely would have been lost.

"It's not usually that extreme…but yea, it's draining like that every time."

"Wow." Kim said, before closing her eyes.

As Kim drifted off into an exhausted slumber, Lantern allowed himself another smile. Then his expression went back to business, as he forced his shaky legs to take him to where Monkey Fist was laying.

He had intended to relieve Monkey Fist of his power ring, but to his surprise, it appeared the fallen monkey master had already been relieved of it, as well as his entire lower right arm, up to the elbow.

Lanterns eyes widened at the sight. He then looked around the roof for any sign of the ring. His eyes turning up nothing, he used his own power ring to search for that particular energy source. The ring also turned up nothing.

'Weird.' Lantern thought as he knelt next to Monkey Fist. 'His rings gone with half his arm, but the wound is completely cauterized. Could have been feedback from the energy blast, but why do I have a feeling its worse then that.'

Monkey Fists stirring snapped Lantern from his thoughts. To tired to will up some construct restraints; Lantern simply placed a knee on Fist's chest, holding him down.

"Monkey!" Fiske shouted suddenly. "Ring! Stoppable, monkey ring! Monkey!"

"What the hell?" Lantern muttered as Fiske continued his babbling rant.

"Think the feedback from all that willpower fried his brain?" Kim asked, as she hobbled up behind Lantern.

"It's possible." Lantern said thoughtfully, as he heard several sets of feet racing up the roof stairwell. "We're about to get some company."

Lantern stood up, and powered down, his tattered costume dissolving into his tattered street clothes.

He took Kim's arm and hooked it around his neck, giving support to her hurt ankle.

"What about Green Lantern?" Kim asked.

Ron winked, and as the police came charging through the door a construct Green Lantern was seen taking off from the edge of the building, flying off into the darkening sky.

"Neat trick." Kim whispered as the police broke into groups, one team heading for the members of the former Team Possible.

Ron smiled, and as the police got to them, he noticed the look in Kim's eyes as she turned away from him with a sigh.

"We need to talk." They said in unison.

A/N…Next chapter will be the conclusion to this part of the yellow power ring story. But don't worry, it will turn up again later. Also, if anyone is wondering why yellow isn't a weakness for Ron's ring. Well…it's a little tricky to explain, but the Green Lantern: Rebirth comics cover it pretty well. Basically the weakness to yellow was the rings only impurity, and after Hal Jordan turned into Parallax, well…no more impurity. As always thanks for reading and don't forget to review, they always make my day. And thanks as always to Classic Cowboy for giving the last few chapters the once over, and for his input.

R


	8. Old Friends, Old Enemies Pt 3

Chapter 8

Old Friends, Old Enemies Part 3

aka

Prelude to Trouble

Kim took a sip of her mocha latte and set it back down on the table of the small New York coffee shop. Her eyes scanned the walls, looking at the pictures and paintings, not surprised that they hadn't changed since the last time she looked, about a minute ago.

In the seat across from her, Ron was using his straw to spin the ice cubes around in the bottom of his nearly empty cup of Mountain Dew. Once he got the Dew and cubes going good in one direction, he would force his straw the other way, reversing the mini typhoon.

The former friends had been sitting in the café for close to a half hour, and the only verbal exchanges had been the typical pleasantries when they first arrived. Ron had thought reconciling would be easier, after the battle with Monkey Fist. On the field of battle all had seemed back to normal. But now, without the threat of danger, you could almost see the tension floating in between them.

After the fight, they had both agreed they needed to talk. Apparently Ron thought, that was easier said then done. Kim had called him after her release from the hospital, and Ron had come up with the meeting place. Now, as they sat and waited, Ron decided it was he who should take the first step towards patching their friendship.

**Space, high above the planet Earth.**

The spacecraft moved silently and methodically towards the third planet from the sun. Long, slender and sleek, the craft was invisible to any human technology, and most alien technology. The ship was a scout vehicle, designed to fly ahead of the main fleet and search out new worlds for this particular race of aliens.

As the earth came into view on the ships view screen, the alien pilot smiled, his lipless mouth curling back into a sinister grin, showing teeth as white as the aliens body. Once the report came in from their agents on the ground, Earths champions would be eliminated, and the planet would be taken.

**Portland, Oregon**

John Jones awoke with a start. With the back of his hand he wiped the sweat that had beaded up on his head. He swung his legs over the side of the bed and buried his head in his hands. The same dream, night after night. Destruction, fire, death haunted his sleep. Cities crumbled and countries fell. He watched as Earths heroes, his friends died horrible deaths.

Standing from the bed, Jones walked into the bathroom and turned on the light. Staring at his reflection in the mirror, he shape shifted into his natural form. His human appearance was replaced with dark green skin, glowing red eyes and a large pointed head. His red harness appeared over his bare chest, and his long blue cape billowed forth from it.

Where moments ago John Jones, police detective was, now stood J'onn J'onzz, the Martian Manhunter stood.

J'onzz had been haunted by similar dreams for as long as he could remember, but usually they were of his native planet Mars. There was something familiar about the dreams, they were borderline precognitive. Something bad was looming on the horizon, and he only hoped Earths heroes were up to the task.

"So how's the ankle?" Ron finally ventured, having gathered his courage with the last sips of his Mountain Dew.

"Sore", Kim replied looking down at the wrapped up ankle. "The doctor said it's just a sprain, I should be fine in about a week."

"So knowing you, that means you'll be off of it for about 3 days." Ron said with a hint of a smile.

"And I'm already on day two." Kim nodded. "What about you, where are you staying now that your apartments got a hole in it."

"You'll love this." Ron started, his grin full. "The landlord overheard me giving my statement to the police. He came over, and I thought for sure he was going to evict me. But much to me surprise, he comes up and gives me a big hug."

Kim scrunched her brow in confusion.

"My thoughts exactly. But as it turns out, we, well you, saved his daughter a couple years ago when she was kidnapped. Once he found out who I was, he wasn't really mad about the apartment anymore. He's moved me upstairs, into a bigger apartment, for the same price until mine is fixed."

"Wow, that's great news." Kim said with a smile. "Small world huh?"

"Yea, I'll say."

The both chuckled for a couple moments, before the silence returned. Finally, Ron had enough.

"I miss this Kim." He began. "Me, you talking, just like old times."

"Yea, well, they wouldn't be the old times if you hadn't…" Kim started.

"Pushed you out of my life, I know." Ron said sinking into his chair.

"Yep." Kim said with a sigh.

"I know you probably don't want to hear my apology, but your going to anyway. These last few months have been so hard Kim."

"Yea, every time I see you on the news it looks like your just miserable." Kim said sarcastically. "Always smiling for the camera. Teaming up with all kinds of superheroes."

"We'll most of them I met when Parallax tried to recreate the universe." Ron recalled. "That wasn't exactly a real happy time."

"And your team up the Star Spangled Kid?" Kim asked with a slight smile.

"Ok, that was fun." Ron said with a blush.

"Uh huh." Kim shook her head. "How old is she again?"

"She's…wait, that has nothing to do with anything! I'm trying to apologize here."

"Of course, do continue." Kim said crossing her arms.

"I thought I could keep everyone safe by pushing them away." Ron said, staring down at the table. "I didn't want what happened to my mom to happen to anyone else, just because they know me. But it got so lonely."

"My dad and I drifted apart. I was never really good at making new friends to begin with, but I purposely didn't try at school and work. When I saw Bonnie and Monique…"

"Ah yes, Bonnie and Monique." Kim said, taking a sip from her latte. "It's alright to keep them around, but not me?

"I just met them a couple of days ago, Kim. They showed up at my apartment by surprise." Ron explained. "And its not like I haven't been trying to get a hold of you."

Kim nodded, and the silence fell over the two again.

"Look, I'll just go." Ron finally said, standing up from the table. "I've said my piece, and you've heard it. If you can't accept my apology then I guess there's nothing else I can do. But know that I made a mistake Kim, and I miss you more then anything. Goodbye."

Kim watched as Ron pushed his chair in and walked out of the café. She watched him as he walked out of sight, hands in his pockets, head down staring at the sidewalk.

She stared after him for several minutes after he was gone, before she finally stood up, and with the aide of her crutches, made her own way out of the door.

Ron grunted as he wedged his easy chair through the door to his new apartment. Though certainly stronger and more athletic since his bumbling sidekick days, Ron usually let his ring do most of the heavy lifting. Today though, that wasn't exactly an option.

"You girls really don't have to help me." Ron huffed setting down the chair, then flopping into it himself.

"So you've said." Monique replied as she unpacked a box of dishes into the kitchen cupboards. "But here we are anyway."

"Yea, you're going to get our kindness whether you want it or not Ronnie boy." Bonnie said with a smile.

"You and kindness Bon, I never would have thought it." Ron joked, earning him a playful middle finger from Bonnie.

"Is that the last of the furniture Ron?" Monique inquired.

"Just the couch, its out in the hallway but I need a hand bringing it in."

"How did you get it up the stairs?" Bonnie asked, as she began double-checking the wires to the television set that for some reason wouldn't turn on.

"Uh, a guy from down the hall helped me bring it up…. Mr…. Green, yea, that's his name." Ron lied, unconsciously hiding his ring hand from the girl's line of sight.

"I can help you bring it in," a voice from the doorway called.

"Kim!" Monique exclaimed from the kitchen. "I thought you went home?"

"I did, but I forgot something." Kim relied, walking into the apartment, still favoring her sore ankle.

As she entered she gave glanced at Ron, then back at Monique giving her a look the other girl recognized.

"Hey Bonnie, what say we run down to the deli and grab a sub and a soda for everyone. I dunno about the two of you, but I'm starved."

"Sure," Bonnie said throwing a wire down in disgust. "I need a break from this damn entertainment set up anyway."

Ron fished around in his pocket for a moment before producing a twenty-dollar bill.

"Here Mon, my treat. Get me a ham and cheese and a Dew please. Kim?"

"No thanks, I just ate a bit ago." Kim said with a wave of her hand.

"We'll be back in a couple." Monique said with a wink as she and Bonnie exited.

"So what did you forget?" Ron asked with a look of confusion. "Drop a gadget on the roof?"

"No." Kim said looking at the ground then back up at Ron with a hint of a tear in her eye. "I forgot my best friend."

As Ron's look went from confused to surprise, Kim closed the space between them and locked him into a tight embrace.

**Titans Tower**

Roy Harper groaned as he looked at the digital clock on the computer controls in the monitoring station of Titans Tower.

If there was one thing the Titan better known as Arsenal hated, it was monitor duty on a Friday night. A Friday night that could be better spent in the company of a pretty young lady…or two.

Roy laughed at himself. A couple years ago that thought would have meant a wild night of passionate three-way sex. Now it meant a date, then going home and tucking his young daughter Lian into bed.

"I've peaked at such a young age." Roy commented out loud, as he tapped the clock, hoping maybe it was broke, and he really didn't have three more hours of monitory duty.

Roy longed for the days when the Justice League was still around. They always handed the brunt of world monitor duty. But without a League, the responsibility fell to the Titans and the Justice Society.

"Those old dudes would probably just fall asleep at the watch anyway." Roy scoffed, hoping for a reformation of the Justice League in the next hour or so.

He thought about trying to trick some of the other Titans in the tower into taking his shift. A quick glance at the active roster discouraged those thoughts though. Tempest, Starfire, Changeling and Cyborg were all wise to his tricks. Though the absence of Donna Troy, the Titan Troia, from the active roster gave hope to dinner with her later on in the evening.

As Roy was about to reach for the phone and call her, an alarm bell sounded on the computer terminal.

_Unauthorized craft landed on roof. _

"Weird", Roy muttered, pressing a few buttons to switch to the roof mounted security cameras. To his dismay the screens showed only static. "Not good."

"All available Titans to the monitor room, we may have a situation." Roy said, pressing the Tower wide communications key.

"That won't be necessary Arsenal. Your team is present and accounted for."

Roy whirled at the sound of the unknown voice. He had sprung from his chair, drew his bow, and nocked an arrow in a matter of split seconds. If anyone were around to be impressed, they would have seen why Roy went by the codename Speedy in his youth.

Roy's eyes widened at the sight in the doorway to the monitor room. Four skeleton white humanoids stood, their red eyes threatening to burn through Roy. Each one stood about seven feet tall, and their medium sized frames were packed with muscle. One in the rear of the group had four arms, each one holding a limp Titan by his or her shirt collar.

Roy rapidly fired three arrows at the invaders. Each one found its mark, sticking in the shoulders and belly of the first alien. Roy's heart sank as the alien simply laughed, and looked down at the arrows, disintegrating them with heat vision.

The alien to the left of the leader made his move, crossing the room in the blink of an eye and delivering a powerful blow to Roy's head. Rolling with the blow Roy went flying across the room, smashing into a computer terminal, his arrows spilling everywhere from his quiver.

"Damn it." Roy muttered as he groped for an arrow. Despite his blackening vision he felt his fingers grasp an arrow shaft. Incendiary arrow he mentally noted as he nocked the arrow and fired at the approaching alien.

The alien caught the arrow inches from his face and laughed. The alien's laugh quickly turned to anguished screams however as the explosive tip of the arrow ignited, showering the attacker in flames.

Roy noted how all the aliens recoiled in fear at the sight of the fire.

"Enough!" the lead alien shouted. He stared hard at Roy, and his red eyes glowed bright for a moment as he sent a powerful telepathic dagger into Roy's mind.

Roy screamed out in pain as his eyes rolled back in his head. His last conscious act was pressing a small button on his belt.

"Um, hi?" Ron said as Kim pulled out of their embrace and wiped a tear from her eye.

"Sit down," Kim said, motioning towards Ron's easy chair. "We…well I need to finish our conversation from the other day."

Ron nodded and plopped down in the chair. Kim, who took a perch on the armrest of the chair, turning herself towards Ron, followed him.

"Ok, first of all I suppose I haven't been completely fair with you lately." Kim began.

"Gee, ya think so?" Ron said with a smirk.

"Trying to swallow my pride here Ron…that's not helping." Kim glared.

"Of course, do continue." Ron said holding up his hands in surrender.

"Anyways, when you left, I guess I took it as a personal shot." Kim began again, staring at the floor. "I guess I kind of understood your reasons, but I thought it was more about you wanting to get out on your own and do the hero thing."

"The more I thought about it though, the more sense it made. I can't imagine what I would do if something like that happened to my mom. I just think you might have made a bit of a knee jerk reaction pushing me away."

Ron placed his hand on Kim's leg and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

"I've been regretting that since I left." Ron confessed. "I only wanted to protect you, but I know you can take care of yourself. I wouldn't have lived to see fourteen if it weren't for you KP."

"I've missed hearing that." Kim smiled. "It hasn't been the same without you around Ron."

"Likewise." Ron said, matching Kim's smile.

"Friends?" Kim ventured hopefully.

"Well…I dunno." Ron said as he placed his hand to his chin in a thoughtful position. "I suppose I could make room for you in my life again."

"You ass." Kim smirked as she slid off the armrest into Ron's lap, wrapping her arms around his neck. "You better have room."

If Ron had a reply it was never heard. A joyful squeak from the doorway interrupted the happy reunion.

"I knew it!" Monique squealed with joy, before she turned to Bonnie. "You owe me twenty bucks."

Bonnie muttered something under her breath and set the brown paper bag containing lunch on a stack of boxes. Reaching into her purse on the floor she pulled out two ten-dollar bills and reluctantly gave them to Monique.

Kim and Ron exchanged confused glances.

"What's the bet Mon?" Ron asked, though he felt he knew the answer.

"Monique and I bet on when you two would become friends again." Bonnie answered as she got the subs and sodas out of the bag. "I said longer then a week from Kim's visit, Monique said less."

"And since it's been four days since you came up to fight Monkey Fist, and had coffee with Ron…I win!" Monique said happily.

"The nerve of some people." Ron said mock offended.

"Tell me about it," Kim grinned

"At least I've still got a chance in the date pool." Bonnie muttered to herself.

"What was that?" Kim called.

"Nothing, subs are ready." Bonnie said quickly.

**Bludhaven**

Dick Grayson groaned as he rolled over in his bed. It was still to early in the day to wake up, especially after a long night of crime fighting. He wished he were still asleep, but the ear piercing beep had invaded his dreams. Swinging his legs over the side of his bed, Dick rubbed the sleep from his eyes and prepared to find the source of the beeping.

He reached down and picked up one of the arm gauntlets from his Nightwing costume, which he had hastily discarded earlier that morning before passing out in his bed. Flipping open a compartment to reveal a tiny computer, his fears were realized. The beeping was Arsenals distress beacon, from Titans Tower.

Dick pressed the communication button but was met with static. He switched frequencies and tried to contact the tower directly, but was met with the same static.

"This doesn't look good." Dick said to himself as he stood up and prepared to get dressed. He stopped himself short when he caught the site of the television news, which he had left on the night before.

The volume was turned down, but the picture on the screen said enough. It was a live feed from Manhattan, specifically the island where Titans Tower stood. The tower was covered in a gray-white substance, and several objects were protruding from the roof, one of which Dick thought looked like a satellite dish of some sort. Above the tower the sky was darkening rapidly, and moving outwards over the city.

"Shit" Dick muttered, kicking it into high gear. He threw on jeans and his leather jacket. He stuffed his Nightwing suit into a backpack, making sure all his utility compartments were fully loaded. As he made his way out of his apartment and down the stairs to his motorcycle, he produced his cell phone and placed a call.

"Bruce? It's me." Dick spoke into his phone. "Yeah, I just saw it. I'm on my way to the Manor now. Have the fastest jet ready for me in twenty. Thanks."

"Is it supposed to rain today?" Ron asked no one in particular has he stared out the window, which now had a fairly decent view of the city.

"I don't think so." Monique replied.

"Well, we could watch the weather forecast if I could figure this DAMN THING OUT!" Bonnie screamed from her position behind the entertainment center.

"Oh for God's sake woman." Monique rolled her eyes as she made her way behind the stand to help Bonnie out.

"What is it Ron?" Kim said softly as she moved to Ron's side.

"I don't know, look." Ron said indicating the rapidly darkening skies.

"Weird. That doesn't really look like a storm front." Kim commented.

"Agreed." Ron nodded, then with a thoughtful glance at his ring, held his hand up towards the window.

"Ring, analysis."

_Output from alien energy source. Race unknown, source approximately ten miles northeast from current location._

"That doesn't sound good." Kim said with a frown.

"No kidding." Ron said absentmindedly as he looked at his ring; surprised asking it for an analysis had worked. 'What else can you do little buddy?' Ron wondered to himself.

"Ha! Got it!" Bonnie yelled triumphantly as the television flickered to life.

"No thanks to me," Monique said rolling her eyes as she picked up the remote and turned the volume up, testing out the speakers.

"…the scene live from Titans Tower, which appears to be covered in some sort of gray matter," the voice from the television declared, as it showed a shot of the aforementioned tower.

"And you say that's where the gray skies are coming from?" another newscaster asked, as the screen split to show the reporter in studio, and the reporter on location.

"That's right Tim, shortly after the tower became covered in this material, one of the protrusions from the top began pumping something out, which is causing the gray clouds."

"Well we can only hope that the Titans are alright inside, and are working on dealing with this developing situation." Newscaster Tim said with a grim look. "We'll be back in a moment."

Monique turned the volume down as the newscast went to commercial. She turned around to face her friends, to find them both already on the move.

"Gotta go." Ron stated as he walked quickly past her and Bonnie. "Lock up if you leave."

"But.." Monique began has she turned towards Kim, who was pulling her black mission shirt over her head.

"I'd stay inside." Kim said as she fluffed her hair, and reached down into her duffel bag, producing her belt and hair dryer. "Who knows what's going on."

"Be careful." Bonnie said, as Kim opened up the window and fired her grapnel line out to the next building.

Kim winked and gave them a wave as she swung out, and made her way up the side of the building where Green Lantern was waiting for her on the roof.

TBC…

A/N- Next chapter the alien invasion heats up. Expect some more cameos by some big time DC heroes coming up. As always be kind and review.

R


	9. Reformation Pt 1

Chapter 9

Reformation Part 1

"Well, I'm stumped." Green Lantern said as he shook his head in frustration.

"Wade, do you have any ideas?" Kim asked as her eyes moved from Green Lanterns landing back to her Kimmunicator.

"It's like nothing I've ever seen." The young genius said with a sigh. "Whatever it is, it's not from Earth."

"Alright, well call back if you come up with anything. Kim out." Kim grunted as she closed the connection and pocketed the device.

"I tried everything," Lantern muttered. "Cutting, blasting, pounding. Nothing can cut through it."

"Do you think there are any of the Titans inside?" Kim wondered.

"Yes, there are."

Kim jumped, and spun around quickly into a fighting stance at the sound of the new voice. Lantern, though taken by surprise calmly turned around to face the newcomer to their rooftop perch.

"Nightwing." Lantern said as he extended his hand, which the masked vigilante shook. "This is…"

"Kim Possible." Nightwing said, nodding at the girl. "Your reputation precedes you."

"Thank you."

"What have you figured out?" Nightwing asked Lantern.

"Well, I can't get in, and we haven't been able to identify the covering. But whatever it is its tough."

"And the darkness?"

"Coming from the Tower." Kim answered. "It's not weather related. Almost like a smog of some sort."

"Damn it." Nightwing grumbled. "Some members of my team are in that Tower. Who or whatever we are dealing with would have to be pretty powerful to overtake them in our own base."

"We need to…wait.." Nightwing began as he pressed his finger to his ear, narrowing his eyes as he listened.

"Reports are coming in that another one of these has popped up on the west coast. And that cloud is spreading quicker by the minute."

"Over another tower?" Kim asked.

"No, its own free standing structure. Apparently from some sort of…" Nightwing paused as he listened to the end of the report. "Some sort of space craft."

"Aliens?" Kim and Lantern said in unison.

"Looks that way." Nightwing replied grimly.

- -

Northern California

Small fires raged through the downtown area of the small town of Clarkson, California. The appearance of a large spacecraft over the town's skies had caused a great mixture of amazement and panic. The amazement vanished when the craft lowered a large tower like structure into a new housing development, destroying several homes.

This of course led to mass hysteria, which only seemed to be fueled by the blackening skies spreading outwards from the tower.

The Martian Manhunter's senses were almost overwhelmed by the panic and anger flowing forth from the town as he flew towards it. The Martian race was powerful telepaths. And for a reason J'onn J'onzz couldn't quite put his finger on, the human emotions were hitting him like a ton of bricks.

As the Manhunter got within eyesight of the townspeople, he turned himself intangible, another one of his natural abilities. He had decided upon approach that the sight of a Martian would certainly induce more panic.

The Manhunter approached the tower, seemingly undetected. As he examined the outside of the structure his eyes went wide with realization.

"H'ronmer, no" J'onzz muttered to himself. "I have to warn the others."

"Hello brother. It's been awhile." A voice sneered from behind J'onzz

J'onzz wheeled in the air to face the voice. The sight of the white alien floating in front of him, equally as intangible as he made the Manhunter's eyes wide again.

"We've been expecting you. Though its clear from your expression, you haven't been expecting us." The alien spat. "Shall we go somewhere to talk?"

Before J'onzz could respond the alien had wrapped a tentacle around him, despite his intangibility. And as if shot from a cannon, the two sped upwards, until they were well free from earths gravity.

- -

Central City

A half hour ago television and radio reports were coming in about the appearance of a strange casing around Titans Tower in New York.

Twenty minutes ago, reports began coming in about a spaceship appearing over a small town in Northern California.

Ten minutes ago the skies over Central City began to darken.

Three and a half minutes ago, riots began to break out all over town. They were small at first, but rapidly increasing in size.

One would have to be the world's fastest man to keep up with all of the events as they happened, and defuse several of the riots before they could escalate.

Fortunately for Wally West, he _is_ the fastest man alive. As the Flash, Wally had traveled to New York at the first report to investigate the Tower. Finding no way in, he dashed out to California to investigate the tower there. He was equally unsuccessful there.

Racing back home, he found that the dark cloud had reached Central City, and seemed to be having a strange effect on the locals.

"Easy buddy, no looting today." Flash remarked to an angry businessman as he snatched a crowbar from his hands. The man was in the middle of pounding his crowbar into the glass of an electronics store.

The man stared at the Flash for a minute before it seemed like a haze had been lifted from his eyes.

"Flash? What am I doing?" The man said as he shook his head.

"You were just about to go home and stay inside until this mess clears out." Flash said with a smile.

"I suppose that would be for the best, thank you Flash!"

Flash nodded and scooted over to the police who were arriving on the scene.

"Officers, can you take it from here?"

"Sure, Flash. We're calling everyone in to help. We were going to call Keystone for backup, but it seems as if they are starting to have the same problems over there." The lead officer said, giving Flash the rundown.

"Hm, that's weird." Flash said rubbing his chin. "I've got to get to New York, this has got to have something to do with that."

The officer nodded, and stepped back as the Flash took off, causing enough wind to knock the officers hat off his head.

'I hope Nightwing is there by now' The Flash thought as he sped towards New York. 'And I hope he has a plan'

As Flash sped away, he failed to notice the businessman he had just sent home rejoining the riots with a renewed anger.

- -

"Riots, all over town!" Kim exclaimed as she watched local news feed on her Kimmunicator screen.

"All over the country." Nightwing added, listening to the information being fed to him via his earpiece.

"I've got to get out there and help." Lantern said as he began to lift off the roof. "People are going to get hurt."

"Lantern, wait." Nightwing ordered. "Something about this tower and that cloud are causing this, and I have a feeling we're going to need that ring of yours here."

"But…"

"Nightwing is right," a new deeper voice spoke from across the building. The trio turned to see the Batman walking across the building towards them. He towered over the other three on the roof, and despite the fact his cape was draped over most of his body, you could tell it hid an amazingly muscular physique. "Have you asked your ring the origin of the covering?"

"Asked my ring?" Lantern blinked as he landed back on the roof. He then remembered the information the ring had provided him back in his apartment. He felt himself blush at his foolishness. "No, sir."

"Take me to the tower." Batman commanded.

Green Lantern nodded as a construct platform appeared for Batman to stand on. Once he was aboard they took off towards the bay, and Titans Tower.

Nightwing shook his head and turned to Kim, who had dropped her Kimmunicator to the rooftop and stood slack jawed staring after Lantern and Batman.

"Kim?" Nightwing asked waving a gloved hand in front of her face.

"He…he does exist. He really exists." Kim muttered.

"Yea" Nightwing began, "Though sometimes you…"

He stopped as he felt the air crackle around him; he turned to his right in time to see a red blur materialize into a red costumed man.

"Flash." Nightwing said. "Riots in Central?"

"It's like everyone's gone mad." Flash nodded. "What's the scoop here?"

"General consensus is it's the tower causing everything, but we don't know how to get in."

"What about Roy and the others?" Flash asked referring to the Titans trapped inside the tower. Like Arsenal and Nightwing, Flash was a founding member of the Teen Titans, back when that trio was Speedy, Robin, and Kid Flash, respectively. Though not an active member of the current Titans team, Flash was still concerned for his friends.

"I don't know." Nightwing said grimly.

- -

"Ring, analyze this substance." Lantern said as he aimed his power ring at the tower.

_Substance is organic. Native to sector 2814._

"That help you out any?" Lantern asked Batman, who was running his gloved hand over the surface of the tower, while shining a flashlight on it with the other.

"Ask the ring what alien race could construct this." Batman said as he stood up from his squatting position, returning his flashlight to his utility belt.

"No…need…my friend."

Batman and Green Lantern turned their heads upwards as the Martian Manhunter descended down upon them. His cape was tattered and his body showed several signs of battle.

"J'onn!" Batman cried as he caught the Martian who had lost control of himself when he tried to slow himself. "What happened?"

"Warn you…I'm not the last…" The Manhunter struggled to get out, before his glowing eyes dimmed and he lost consciousness.

"What does that mean?" Lantern asked as he made a construct cot, which Batman laid J'onn on.

"It means I know who we're dealing with. Back to the others."

Lantern nodded, and the trio of heroes flew back to the roof where Kim and Nightwing were.

- -

As Green Lantern descended onto the roof, he noticed that the number of heroes had grown since he had gone with Batman to investigate the tower.

Superman and Wonder Woman had arrived, and were talking with Nightwing. Also joining the party were the Titans Troia, and Raven. The two of them were talking with the Flash and Kim, who despite the situation seemed like she could barely suppress a smile.

Green Lantern smiled to himself. Kim had looked up to Troia, when she was the superhero Wonder Girl. She never said it, but Lantern figured she had influenced Kim's decision to try the hero business.

Lantern had got to meet most of the heroes on the rooftop shortly after he moved to New York, when Parallax had tried to restart the universe. He was going to ask Troia for an autograph to send to Kim, but the timing seemed inappropriate.

"J'onn!" Superman said as he noticed the injured Manhunter, and sprinted over to him, as the Lantern set him down slowly. Batman took off briskly towards an unoccupied part of the roof, where Nightwing met him.

Raven joined Superman at the Martian Manhunter's side. She placed a hand on his chest and closed her eyes.

"I can alleviate some of his pain." She said in her dry monotone. "But I'm not familiar enough with his physiology to completely heal him."

"Do what you can Raven, but don't wear yourself out, I have a feeling we're going to need you." Superman said.

Raven nodded and closed her eyes again, focusing on the Martian Manhunter. As an empath, it was in her abilities to absorb other people's pain into her own body. She groaned and several bruises and cuts vanished from J'onn's body, but then appeared on hers.

Superman pulled her hand from J'onn's body when her groan turned into a scream.

"That's enough, you've helped him enough Raven." The man of steel said, as he indicated the Manhunter's breathing, which was now slow and steady instead of short and shallow.

Superman helped Raven to her feet and led her over to where the others were gathering, prepared to listen to Nightwing and Batman.

"All of our Intel suggests that these towers are the source of the riots sweeping across the nation." Nightwing began. "Which, as we speak are getting worse by the minute. Since this tower was the first, there's a good chance it's the aliens base."

"Our attack is going to be two pronged." Batman said, his gruff voice sending a chill down Kim's spine. "One team will be a team led by Nightwing, their main priority will be the search and rescue of the captured Titans."

"The other teams goal will be to get inside, locate whatever is producing that black cloud, and destroy it. Everyone will be in constant radio contact with the standard com devices."

"Lantern, Kim…I have extra's for you." Nightwing added as the two teens nodded. "Raven, Donna and Kim…you're with me. The rest of you are with Batman."

The group nodded as they began to split apart. As Green Lantern adjusted his tiny earpiece communicator, the Flash came over and elbowed him in the ribs.

"Whatdya think? Looks like the Justice League over here." Flash said with a slight grin.

Lantern looked around at the people he was about to go into battle with. Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash. The world's greatest heroes…and him.

"Man, I dunno Flasher. I feel a bit out of place."

"Don't sell yourself short kid." Flash said. "You're the Green Lantern. Here's your chance to prove you belong with the big boys."

Lantern smiled and nodded, all the while one thought played in the back of his mind. 'Don't screw it up!'

"One question." Wonder Woman spoke up, her powerful voice drawing everyone's attention to her. "How are we getting in?"

"Fire." Batman responded simply "If my theory is correct, the organic structure around the tower should be vulnerable to fire."

"An organic alien structure that's vulnerable to fire?" Wonder Woman repeated as her eyes widened slightly. "You mean?"

Batman nodded

"Martians."

- -

A/N- For anyone with questions about the Titans membership and their personalities, I'm using the comic book version of the team that was around when the Green Lantern Corps was destroyed and everything. Of course I've made a few adjustments to their roster but its not going to be like the animated team. As always, hope everyone enjoyed this chap, be kind and review. So until next time…

R


	10. Reformation Pt 2

Chapter 10

Reformation Part 2

"Martians? How is that possible?" The Flash asked what everyone else was wondering. "I thought J'onn was the last of his kind."

"Perhaps I can explain, Flash." The Martian Manhunter said weakly from behind the gathered heroes.

The heroes turned to face the Manhunter, who had regained consciousness and was sitting on the edge of the building.

"J'onn, your still weak…" Superman began, moving towards his old friend.

"Yes, but you need to hear this." J'onn sighed. "You need to know what your up against."

"Years ago, when Martian society was flourishing there became a group of Martians who had a tendency to lean more towards warlike, or military thinking. Generally most of us were more philosophical, enjoyed peace. Violence was an absolute last resort."

"These White Martians began causing more and more trouble on Mars. Finally after an incident involving the evolution of life on Earth…their group was sentenced to eternity in the Phantom Zone."

Hushed whispers spread throughout the heroes. Many knew of the Phantom Zone, which was more or less a dimension of limbo, of nothing at all. To be banished there for eternity their crimes had to be heinous.

"Somehow…I don't know how…they have escaped." J'onn continued. "They plan to conquer Earth, to make it the new Martian home world."

"What about this black cloud, and the riots?" Troia asked.

"The black cloud will eventually spread over the Earth if their bases are not shut down. It's laced with psychic energy." J'onn explained. "By broadcasting intense signals of hate and fear the White Martians hope that Earths citizens will destroy themselves, leaving minimal work for the invaders."

"But why Titans Tower?" Kim asked softly, her normal boldness in check slightly due to the company she was keeping.

"From an attacking point of view, its an obvious target." Nightwing responded. "They know regular armies don't have the might to stop them."

"And the Justice Society is off planet currently." Wonder Woman chimed in, referring to the team of elder heroes who was currently fighting the good fight in another dimension.

"Which leaves the Titans as the only active super team on the planet." Nightwing said, pounding his fist into his open palm. "They caught us completely off guard."

Troia placed a reassuring hand on Nightwing's shoulder, which had a calming effect on the vigilante.

"We'll get Roy and the others Dick, don't worry." Troia whispered into his ear.

"All right everyone, we know what we're up against. Let's move." Superman said, motioning towards the tower.

J'onn moved to stand but stopped when a black gloved hand gripped his shoulder.

"Stay here J'onn, you're still to weak." Batman commanded. "If we fail…it'll be up to you."

J'onn nodded and reluctantly sat back down.

"You won't fail." J'onn said, as Batman nodded and walked to the end of the Tower.

--GL—

"I'm starting to think coming down here was a bad idea!" Bonnie Rockwaller called over the roar of the crowds and the fires.

Bonnie and Monique had decided to head for their apartment after they had finished tidying up Ron's. Unfortunately for them, they had run right into the middle of a riot.

"Monique?" Bonne called, panicking when she realized she couldn't find her friend. A shrill scream caused her to jerk around, where she saw her friend in a tussle with two men.

One of the men had taken Monique from behind and had his arms wrapped around her torso, pinning her arms at her side. The other was approaching her from the front with a large switchblade drawn.

"No!" Bonnie called as she raced towards the three. The man with the knife turned surprised and was met with a swift kick to the groin. He let out an otherworldly scream and dropped to his knees, tears forming in his eyes.

This surprised the other man, who loosened his grip on Monique, who wriggled free. Once free, she reached into her purse and produced her mace, which was promptly blasted into the mans eyes.

Their attackers dispatched, the two girls turned and embraced each other. Pulling away both of them could feel their adrenaline still running high. Exchanging wicked smiles and ignoring the slight glow to their eyes, the girls picked up a couple broken bottles, and discarded bricks, and with a yell charged headfirst into the riot.

-GL-

"Everyone clear on what to do?" Nightwing asked one final time. The heroes had gathered outside a point on the far side of the tower, near the lower level. Nightwing had pointed that spot out as an emergency escape hatch, which would be easy to breach once the Martians defenses were cracked.

"Alright then," he continued as he armed a pair of explosive batarangs. "Go!"

Batman and Nightwing each fired their batarangs at the spot, all of them hitting their mark. As soon as the Batarangs lodged into the surface, Superman ignited them with his heat vision. A fairly large size ball of fire erupted on the side of the tower, revealing the shiny surface below.

"Lantern, now!" Nightwing called.

Lantern nodded and fired a beam of energy at the center of the hole. He felt the beam strike the surface of the tower, and began to push it outwards, widening the hole and creating a good size doorway.

"Hurry…through…" Lantern grunted as sweat beaded his brow. "The coverings…pushing back!"

Superman obliged, blasting forward through the opening and the side of the tower. Everyone followed in after him, with the fliers carrying the non-fliers.

Once everyone was inside, Lantern dashed in himself, barely making it in before the hole resealed itself.

"Good god" Lantern breathed as he slouched against the inner wall. "Let's hope we can take the front door out of here."

"Nice work son." Superman said with a smile as he offered Lantern a hand. "But there's no time to rest."

"Is there ever?" Lantern replied as he took Superman's hand and was easily pulled up.

"All right guys, let's split up. Everyone knows the objectives. Move out!" Nightwing called, as the previously assigned groups split and ran separate ways down the hall.

"Ron!" A harsh whisper stopped Lantern in his tracks. He spun around and found himself with a face full of Kim. She pressed her lips to his in a quick kiss.

"For luck." She said before she turned and ran off with the Titans team.

Lantern smiled to himself as he watched her run off for a moment, before turning to catch up with his team.

-GL-

The Titans team ran down a seemingly endless route of hallways and stairwells. They had stopped briefly at a computer terminal, which Nightwing used to deactivate all the towers defense and monitoring systems. Though he was sure the Martians knew they were inside, they didn't know when or where the Titans were going to strike next.

"Where exactly are we heading?" Kim asked as the group made a sharp turn down another long hallway.

"We tracked Arsenals signal to the holding cells, about one floor down." Troia responded, then added with a smile. "The tower is a lot easier to get around with the elevators, trust me."

"I'll bet." Kim said returning the smile. She faced front in time to barely avoid running right into the back of Nightwing.

"They're right below us." He said, closing a small tracking computer on one of his gauntlets. "Raven, can you use your soul self to see what we're up against?"

Raven nodded and closed her eyes. She floated a few feet off the ground, and folded her legs under her in a meditative stance. Kim gasped as a giant raven, which was made of some sort of dark energy left Ravens body and vanished through the floor below.

A couple moments passed and the dark shape returned, and reformed with Ravens body. Her eyes opened wide and she floated back down to the ground.

"There are six Martians on guard Nightwing." Raven said in her monotone voice.

"Lovely." Nightwing said as he looked at his companions. "Everyone ready?"

Donna responded by cracking her knuckles. Kim nodded as she pulled a handful of her explosive pellets from a pouch on her belt. Raven said nothing.

"All right then. Lets go." Nightwing said with a nod towards Raven, who spread her cloak. The others were encased in her black energy and were teleported through the floor into the holding area.

-GL-

Meanwhile on the upper levels of the tower in the main conference room, the other group had already encountered the first wave of the Martian resistance.

"Ya know, when I woke up this morning, the first thing I hoped for was to get to take on an army of beings almost as powerful as Superman." Lantern quipped as he deflected a blast of heat vision back at a Martian with a construct mirror. The Martian screamed in pain as the heat returned to its eyes.

Lantern turned to his left hearing a loud thumping noise, and his eyes went wide behind his mask. He barely had enough time to duck as the Man of Steel went flying overhead, the recipient of a powerful blow from a Martian.

"Then I hope your not disappointed that they're actually _as_ powerful as Superman." The Flash said as he skidded to a stop next to Lantern and crouched down.

Before Lantern could ask what he was doing, two Martians came flying over the Flash's head and crashed into the wall at the far end of the room.

"I can pull things at super speed if I catch them in my slipstream and bring them behind me." Flash explained before dashing off.

In the air above them Wonder Woman was trading blow for blow with another Martian. For every awesome punch the Amazon landed the Martian had one of his own to counter.

"You are a strong warrior." The Martian hissed as the two circled each other in mid air. "If earth women weren't disease ridden dogs, I would keep you around after our conquest is complete. As a personal plaything…"

Wonder Woman's eyes narrowed as she unhooked her golden lasso from her belt.

"I can't begin to describe how that thought sickens me, Martian." She spat as she lassoed the Martian around the neck. She spun him around several times in the air before firing him at the floor, the lasso unraveling itself from around the Martians neck.

The Martian headed straight for the Green Lantern who had turned his eyes upwards after hearing the insult. Lantern stepped aside and whipped up a construct pet carrier, which the Martian crashed into.

"Dog huh?" Lantern asked. "Looks like that's the other way around. Go fetch."

Lantern closed the door to the cage as a batarangs went sailing through the opening. Lantern jumped back as he heard the quite bang and saw flames erupting out the front. Screams of Martian agony followed shortly.

He turned skyward and gave thumbs up to Wonder Woman, who returned it with a smile. He glanced over at Batman, but three more Martians already surrounded him.

Lantern made a motion to go help, but was stopped by a strong grip on his shoulder. He turned to see Superman pointing at the ground around Batman. There was a medium sized circle of powder spread on the floor, just big enough for the four fighters. Once the last Martian had entered the circle, Batman dropped a shiny silver ball onto the powder, which caused it all to ignite, encasing them in a circle of fire.

Inside the circle the three Martians circled the Batman.

"Your puny fire matters not. Despite it, you are still human." One of the Martians declared.

That Martian quickly caught a strong sidekick to the gut, doubling him over. He was then grabbed by his neck, and flipped over the Batman's shoulder into one of the others. The third tried a flying lunge, but the heat had weakened him more then he thought, and he crashed to the ground at Batman's feet. As he pushed himself up the steel toe of the Dark Knights boot crashed into his chin, sending him sprawling backwards. The three made an effort to stand again, but the fire and the Bat were to much. They fell back to the floor, unconscious.

The rest of the team gathered outside the fire, the rest of their attackers subdued, or retreated. Batman emerged through the waning fire with his cape wrapped around him to protect him from the flame.

"Lets go, this isn't over." He said as he pushed past the group and began walking in the direction they had been heading before.

"Imagine if he had superpowers." Flash whispered to Lantern as they followed Batman.

"You mean he doesn't?" Lantern asked wide-eyed, which got a chuckle out of the Flash.

-GL-

In the holding area of Titans Tower, the Titans assemblage was having mixed luck with their rescue mission. They had initially caught the Martians by surprise, but that advantage didn't hold long.

"Kim! Get to the holding cells and release the other Titans!" Nightwing called out as he flipped away from a blast of Martian heat vision. "We need the reinforcements!"

"I'm a little busy at the moment here!" Kim called as she found herself cornered by two of the Martian warriors.

One of the Martians made a move towards her, but was stopped dead in its tracks. The alien reached for its neck and gagged, as Troia's lasso dug into its throat. With a mighty tug, Troia pulled the alien away from Kim and sent him crashing into another that was moving in towards Raven.

Giving Troia a thumbs up, and using the surprise her attack gave the other Martian, Kim leapt into action. She took two steps towards the other Martian before stopping and delivering a powerful savate kick to its face. She followed that smoothly into a leg sweep, which deposited the Martian on its backside.

She was quickly on her feet and sprinting towards the holding cells. On her way by though, she left her foe with a parting gift in the form of one of her explosive fireballs. The alien's cries of pain were an afterthought as she reached the holding cells control panel.

"What's the password?" Kim hollered to anyone who was listening.

Her answer came in the form of a silver bat shaped shuriken, which whizzed past her and struck in the center of the control panel, sending sparks flying. The doors then unlatched themselves, allowing Kim entrance.

Kim rushed in hoping the other Titans were in condition to help them out. Across the room Nightwing was hoping the same thing.

"I hope Roy and the others are able to fight, because I don't think we're gonna be able to carry them out." Nightwing tossed over his shoulder to Troia who was fighting the aliens from behind him.

"I hope so to hon." Troia agreed. "How do you think the other team is doing?"

"Hopefully better then us. Lift us up in five."

Troia nodded, and began counting the seconds off in her head. As she did a thick cloud of smoke appeared around them. Once her count hit five, she grabbed Nightwing around the waist and flew out of the smoke cloud. She saw the Martians rush in, and smiled when an explosion knocked them back, flames licking at them from where Nightwing and Troia once stood.

"Ok, that's three down." Troia said. "Three more to..ah!"

Troia screamed as a blast of heat vision hit her in the back, causing her to lose her grip on Nightwing and plummet back towards the floor. Nightwing tucked himself into a roll and landed gracefully on his feet. As he did he spun around in time to catch Troia in his arms. Unfortunately this left him wide open to attack by the two Martians who were floating towards him.

Nightwing ran through his options quickly as the Martians eyes began to glow read. Fortunatly for him, an unexpected option turned up. Before the Martians could fire their heat vision, each one was struck in the face with a red arrow. The arrows lodged in Martians face, and then erupted with a small explosion.

"Five down." Troia smiled as Nightwing set her back on her feet. "Thanks."

Nightwing nodded and turned to the direction the arrows came from. Arsenal was lowering his bow, but was relying heavily on support from Cyborg to stand. Changeling had shifted into a green kitten, which was perched on Kim's shoulder. Starfire carried the limp form of Tempest in her arms.

"Hera." Troia breathed. "What happened?"

"Damn Martians…" Arsenal gasped. "Took us by surprise. They've been draining us mentally. Don't know for what."

"The black cloud." Nightwing theorized. "They must've been using your emotions and mental strengths to help it grow."

"Poor Garth must have taken the worst of it." Donna said as she took Tempest from Starfire. "His telepathic abilities must've amplified it all."

"How are you Kory?" Nightwing asked. Starfire seemed to be the only Titan who hadn't taken a beating.

"I have been tortured before." Starfire stated, referring to her younger days when she had been sold into a life of slavery to save her home planet of Tameran. "Though this was exhausting, I have faced worse."

Nightwing gave his one time lover a reassuring smile. Even though it had gotten them in to trouble on occasion, he had always admired Starfire's toughness and warrior personality.

"The final Martian has fallen." Raven's voice deadpanned suddenly behind the Titans.

The others turned to face her as she dropped the limp form of a Martian seemingly from inside her cloak.

"Man, I don't even wanna know." Changeling piped up from Kim's shoulder.

"I suggest we meet up with the others, before this group recovers." Raven suggested.

"Agreed. Raven, can you teleport them out of here?" Nightwing asked as he motioned towards the other Titans.

"Hell with that Robbie." Arsenal said grabbing his old friend by the shoulder. "These bastards come into our home and mess with our minds, you better believe I'm not sitting this out."

"Roy you can barely stand." Troia protested.

"If I can nock an arrow, I can fight babe."

"Titans together gang." Cyborg chimed in, his voice raspy.

Nightwing surveyed his team and nodded. "Fine, but can you at least get Tempest out of here."

Raven closed her eyes for a moment and nodded. "Without the extra energy from our friends, the shield around the tower is weak enough for me to penetrate from the inside."

"Good, take him to the Dawson Insurance offices on 45th street. It's a front for Star Labs."

Raven nodded and scooped up Tempest. With a flash of black energy, they were gone.

"All right. Batman's signal is coming from the hangar on the top floor. Lets move." Nightwing said as the Titans followed his lead towards the stairs.

-GL-

"Stand down now!" Superman called, his voice echoing through the cavernous jet hangar that made up the top floor of Titans Tower. "This is your only chance to surrender and leave Earth peacefully."

The group of heroes had made their way to the hangar facing minimal resistance. Once they had arrived, they realized they had reached the heart of the Martian operation. Several rows of Martians sat in high back chairs, all encased in some sort of stasis field. In the center of the hanger was a large machine, which had a satellite dish coming from the top, and heading out the open hangar door in the ceiling.

"That has to be what they're using to spread the cloud." Batman had said when they burst into the room.

"Then that's gotta be the leader of this outfit." Flash commented, pointing to the Martian who stood in front of the machine, monitoring several gauges.

"Well, well. It seems I have underestimated Earths heroes." The Martian said with a wicked smile. "Though your comrade J'onn J'onzz overestimated your abilities, for he predicted a victory for your cause. And that will simply not happen."

"Then you're the one who injured J'onn." Wonder Woman accused. "For that, you will receive no mercy from me."

The Martian laughed heartily. "Your threats are empty and meaningless woman. I commend your efforts up to this point, but it ends here. You meet your fate at the hands of Protex."

"Take him." Superman commanded.

The Flash dashed forward but fell to the ground, clutching his head in agony.

"Flash!" Green Lantern exclaimed reaching for the speedster, before he to fell to the ground clutching his head in agony.

One by one the rest of the heroes fell. As the last one, Batman, fell to the ground, Protex's toothy grin widened, as his eyes glowed a soft yellow.

"Earth's champions are defeated. The planet is ours."

---

Notes…

Well first off, sorry for the long wait for this chapter. I've been working some long hours this summer, and have had very little free time to sit down and write. Not to mention some issues with getting this chapter and the next to flow together correctly.

But I would like to thank everyone who has reviewed in the last couple months despite my lack of updating. You guys gave me the drive to work on it whenever I had a moment. Not to mention the encouragment from Classic Cowboy (thanks as always for the beta). So anyways enjoy, I hope it was worth the wait…and the next chapter should be coming along very soon.

-R


	11. Reformation Pt 3

Chapter 11

Reformation Part 3

"Clark! Dinner!"

Clark Kent smiled and wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his forearm. He dropped his hoe to the ground and stretched his tired arms out.

"Coming Ma!" He called up to the family farmhouse. It took him a couple minutes to cross the field and get to the porch, and when he did his mother was waiting for him.

"Honestly Clark, you work to hard when you come out to visit. This is supposed to be a getaway for you and Lois." Ma Kent scolded.

"C'mon Ma." Clark said sheepishly. "You know I love to help out here. And besides, working in the field is a heck of a getaway from the Daily Planet and that rat race."

"I'm sure it is honey." Ma said with a smile. "Now get cleaned up, Lois and I have quite the dinner prepared."

-GL-

Deet-Deet-Deet-Deet-Deet 

"Ugh, time to get up already?" Ron groaned as he rolled over and smacked the top of his alarm clock. "Mm, snooze."

"I don't think so sleepy head."

Ron's eyes crept open at the sound of the distinctly female voice coming from the other side of his bed. He followed the voice to the distinctly naked Kim who was standing up wrapping a bathrobe around her body.

"What? You act like you've never seen me naked before hun." Kim said as she leaned into kiss Ron on the forehead. "So get up and lets get a shower. Our parents will be up in a few minutes."

Ron blinked the sleep from his eyes and mind and smiled.

"Right, they're coming with us to the United Nations to accept that award."

"Of course…are you alright Ron? You seem a little out of it." Kim asked concerned.

"No, I'm fine. It's just not every day you get to accept the first annual World Peace award after being put up in the nicest hotel room I've ever been in." Ron said waving his arm around the Presidential Suite of the Wayne Hotel.

"Well when we put almost every single super villain behind bars in a single summer, I guess we deserve some accolades." Kim said with a shrug.

"Right you are my dear." Ron said getting out of bed. "Now, about that shower."

-GL-

Ron had just finished tightening his tie when a knock came at the door of their hotel room.

"I'll get it." Ron called into Kim who was in the bathroom doing her hair.

Ron strolled over to the door and threw it open, revealing the Possible's, all wearing big smiles.

"Doctors P, Jim, Tim." Ron greeted them all with a smile and hugs for Mr. And Mrs. Possible.

"Ready for your big day Ronald?" Mr. Possible asked with a smile.

"I am…I don't know about your daughter though." Ron said with a wink.

"I heard that!" Kim called from the bathroom.

Ron was in the process of shutting the door, when a hand offered resistance on the other side. Curious, Ron peaked back out, and grinned when he saw who was standing there.

"Dad! You made it." Ron smiled embracing his father.

"Please Ron, like your mother and I would miss this." Mr. Stoppable said, as he pulled away from Ron and straightened the young mans tie.

"Mom?" Ron said, suddenly feeling like he had when he woke up this morning.

"We're so proud of Ron." Mrs. Stoppable said from her position behind Mr. Stoppable. "We love you."

Ron blinked for a moment, then felt a smile spread across his face.

"I love you too Mom."

-GL-

"Look at the size of that limo Ron." Kim whispered into Ron's ear as she clung onto his right arm.

"Quite the ride." Ron agreed "I wonder who its for."

"It's for you and your families of course Mr. Stoppable." A lovely dark haired woman dressed in a sharp red business suit said with a smile. "Diana Prince, Ambassador of Theymiscira."

Kim shook Diana's outstretched hand.

"It's nice to meet you Miss Prince. I'm a fan of your work in the Assembly."

"As I'm a fan of your work in the field Miss Possible. You've done more for world peace in one summer then I have in the last five years." Diana said as she extended her hand towards Ron.

Ron shook the hand, but seemed in a bit of a daze. "Have we met before?" he asked slowly.

Diana wrinkled her brow in a thoughtful manner. "Not that I'm aware of."

Ron nodded and smiled shyly. "My mistake."

Diana returned the smile, and then glanced at her wristwatch. "Well we had better get going, I'll brief you about the ceremony on the way to the United Nations. Right this way."

Diana took off towards the limo, introducing herself to the Possible and Stoppables on the way. Ron began to follow, but stopped in his tracks as Kim grabbed his arm.

"Are you ok Ron? You've seemed out of it all morning." Kim asked putting her hand on his cheek.

"I'm fine KP." Ron assured her by taking her hand off his cheek and giving it a squeeze.

"Actually", he began as he looked long at her, then towards his mother. "Somehow, I don't think I could be any better."

-GL-

"Batman? Batman?" Nightwing shouted into his comlink. "Damnit. Any luck on getting in there?"

"None, this thing is stronger then the one on the outside." Troia sighed.

The Titans had raced to the top of the tower where they knew Batman and the other team to be. Unfortunately once they arrived, they found the room sealed off by the same kind of shield that covered the outside of the tower.

"Are we sure they're in there?" Changeling asked.

"Why else would the door be sealed like this salad head?" Arsenal growled.

Changeling opened his mouth to respond but was cut off by Cyborg.

"This thing goes all the way around to, through the floor, ceiling and walls." Cyborg said looking at readouts on his arm computer. "There's no way in."

"But we have to get in there!" Kim exclaimed, no longer able to control her fear for Ron.

Troia came up and put a reassuring hand on Kim's shoulder, thought it didn't do much to alleviate her fear.

"They're all right Kim, they have to be. Nightwing, what about J'onn?"

-GL-

The Martian Manhunter closed his eyes and sighed. His friends had been in the tower too long, and the White Martians weapons still seemed operational.

'How long do I wait before making my move?' he thought to himself. 'No, I can't think like that, they cannot have failed.'

"J'onn, do you read me?" 

The crackled voice startled J'onn out of his thoughts; he pressed his finger to the communication device in his ear.

"Nightwing? I read you."

"We've run into a bit of a snag here. We've rescued the Titans…but we're not sure about the other group."

J'onn listened as Nightwing explained their current situation. The energy wall keeping the Titans out concerned J'onn the most.

"One moment Nightwing."

J'onn closed his eyes and reached out towards the tower with his mind. The energy shield might have been enough to keep physical beings out, but it had no defense against J'onn's psychic abilities.

He focused on Nightwing, and once he found him he moved out, searching for the other team. He finally found them, all in a dream like trance, their psychic energies fueling the shield, not to mention increasing the power of the black cloud.

"Good heavens no…" J'onn said as he glanced into the minds of friends and former teammates. "Nightwing, stay where you are, I'll be right there."

-GL-

Bruce Wayne yawned as he strode down the massive main staircase of stately Wayne Manor.

"Good Morning Alfred." Bruce said groggily to his loyal manservant.

"To you as well Master Bruce." Alfred replied, offering Bruce a cup of coffee, which he had on a silver tray. "And how are we this morning?"

"As well as can be expected." Bruce said taking a sip of the coffee. "You know how the nightlife in this town can be."

"Unfortunately sir, I do." Alfred sighed as he produced the morning newspaper from underneath his arm. It was folded so that Bruce could read the headline on the back page, which was reserved for celebrity stories, or gossip.

"Drunken Billionaire Causes Scene at Soirée."

"It appears parading around in your underwear, with equally undressed women is frowned upon in today's society sir."

Bruce studied the paper for a moment. Indeed there was a picture of him with two beautiful women, but something wasn't right. Bruce couldn't seem to remember anything about the incident in question.

"Oh Bruce, you're up, I was hoping I'd get a chance to see you before we left."

Bruce turned at the sound of the new voice that had entered the room. It was a voice all too familiar, yet all too distant in his memory.

"Father?"

"Yes Bruce." Thomas Wayne said furrowing his brow. "You really need to watch your drinking habits Bruce. Your mother and I wish to have a chat about that and your public image later."

"You do have a family name to uphold you know." Martha Wayne chimed in as she entered the room. "We'll be at the tennis club until around one o'clock. But be home after that."

Bruce stared at his mother. She stood before him dressed in a white jumpsuit carrying her gym bag. But all Bruce could picture her in were…pearls. Pearls hitting cold damp asphalt…blood…

"But you know the kids are coming over today." Bruce's words were soft, and forced. Coming from memories and plans that were not his own.

"Well I'm sure Dick and Jason won't mind waiting with Alfred and Selina for a little bit."

"I'll be baking the young sirs favorite cookies." Alfred said with a smile.

"Selina…" Bruce's voice trailed off.

"Yes, Bruce…you know, the mother of your adopted children? Your wife?" Thomas said shaking his head.

"Honestly Bruce, I don't know what you would do without us." Martha scolded.

Whatever else was said was lost to Bruce Wayne, as his eyes wandered into the open door of the study, and locked onto the grandfather clock against the far wall.

-GL-

"They're what?" Changeling asked, his confusion obvious.

"In a dreamlike state. Somehow, they've been placed in…it's almost like a trance. Only from what I can tell, they are all living out their innermost fantasies." J'onn explained.

"But why do that? These guys are trying to take over the earth, but they are making ideal mental lives for its heroes?" Arsenal said, shaking his head. "It doesn't make any sense."

"Actually, it does." Troia stated. "Their hate weapon or whatever is powered by psychic energy, and the Martians are obviously drawing it out of them, like they were out of you guys."

"And if they are content, they aren't going to fight back." Kim said, understanding what Troia was getting at.

"I sense the traces of the same psychic residue around your mind and the other Titans, Arsenal." J'onn said, his eyes glowing yellow.

"Then why don't we remember?" Cyborg asked. "It seems like an ideal dream life that seems real is something I remember."

"You don't remember all your dreams do you Vic?" Nightwing asked the half robot Titan. "I'm guessing it has something to do with the indirect way you were drained, and the way you were freed."

"Correct." J'onn nodded. "Superman and the others faced the White Martians leader head on. His psychic powers are strong, and he is controlling them directly, not through the aide of the devices you were hooked up to."

"So we get in there, take out this lead guy, and the others will be free." Kim said, cracking her knuckles. "But how do we get in there?"

"I'm afraid it's not that simple Kimberly." J'onn sighed. "Breaking a link that direct could destroy the minds of everyone connected. They have to remove themselves."

"But who would want to remove themselves from their ideal life?" Changeling wondered aloud.

"If they knew it was a dream…remembered what happened, they would." Nightwing stated, looking towards J'onn.

"I can do what you are going to ask Nightwing." J'onn nodded. "But I can only help them remember, I cannot make them leave."

"Can we help?" Troia asked, looking around at her friends. Most of them gathered outside shared a special connection to one of those in the dream state; surely those connections could help bring them out.

"I'm afraid I cannot allow that Donna. The mind is a beings most sacred place. Even I am not comfortable with this trespass, I cannot permit anyone else to enter."

"It has to be done though." Nightwing said.

J'onn nodded and closed his eyes.

-GL-

"Thank you Officer West!" a small child exclaimed, hugging one Officer Wally West.

"No problem Timmy." Wally said with a smile as he stood up and brushed his hands off. "You just be easy on that bike or that chain will come off again."

Timmy nodded and thanked Wally again before riding off on his newly repaired bicycle.

"The kids in the neighborhood sure do like you Wally." Detective Barry Allen said with a smile at his nephew.

"I'm glad I can give them someone to come to for help if they need it. So many of them are growing up without fathers." Wally sighed. "Thanks for walking the beat with me today Uncle Barry."

"Anytime Wally." Barry smiled. "Its nice to come back to my roots every once in a while. Have you given anymore thought about taking your exams to move up in the ranks?"

"I don't know. I could use the pay increase…especially with Linda pregnant." Wally smiled. "But I think I would miss this too much.

"Wally…"

"Who the hell?" Wally and Barry exclaimed in unison as they drew their guns at the Martian Manhunter, who had materialized in front of them.

"Remember, Wally. This isn't reality."

The skies overhead began to darken, and lightning flashed across the sky. Wally watched in horror as one of the bolts struck Barry, and dropped him to the ground.

"Barry!" Wally cried out as he rushed to his uncle's side. "Are you?"

"I'm fine…" Barry began, as his suit began to burn away to reveal the bright red costume of the Flash.

"What?" Wally said taking a step back as he too was struck by lightning. He screamed in pain for only a moment, before he realized his body was now covered in the same costume as his uncle.

"Wally." J'onn asked, approaching the young man.

"I remember J'onn." Wally said, as Barry smiled at him lovingly before he faded away along with the rest of the illusion. "I remember."

-GL-

"I was wondering when you were going to show up." Bruce Wayne sighed, as he rose from the chair in his study to face J'onn J'onzz.

"You were?" J'onn asked, confused. "But…"

"The memory of my parents deaths is to powerful to be pushed aside." Bruce said. "Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find away out of this…charade. I suspected you would show up with an exit strategy sooner or later."

"Right as usual." J'onn smiled. "I think you know the way now."

Bruce nodded and walked over towards the grandfather clock. Where moments ago there was nothing behind it but a blank wall, there was now a doorway. Usually the dark and forbidding path to the bat cave, the door glowed brightly this time. Bruce took one last look over his shoulder at the life he should have been living.

'But not like this.' Bruce thought to himself as he stepped into the bright door.

-GL-

"Excellent dinner honey." Clark said, giving his wife a peck on the cheek.

"It was wasn't it?" Lois said smugly as she ran hot water over the dinner dishes. "But I can't take the credit, it was 95 Ma's work." She added with a sigh.

"Well your 5 was still pretty good." Clark smiled. "I'm going to see if Pa wants some coffee."

Clark passed through the swinging door into the Kent living room. The room was small and cozy, with several family pictures hung on the wall behind the fireplace. Clark paused and looked at the pictures smiling warmly at the memories they brought.

His smile faded when he noticed an unfamiliar picture dead center above the mantle. It was of Clark, with a young man who vaguely resembled him, and a white dog. The two had their arms around each other's necks and were laughing like old friends.

"His name's Conner. Or Kon-El. Or Superboy. It all depends on who you ask." The Martian Manhunter spoke from behind Clark.

"Who?" Clark demanded as he spun around. Seeing the Martian his eyes went wide.

"I'm sorry my friend. But the world needs you. And not in this dream world."

"What are you talking about? Who the hell are you?" Clark demanded clenching his fists.

"You once vowed to never let another planet be destroyed like Krypton, your home world." J'onn explained. "I believe you refer to it as the never ending fight."

"I have no idea what you're talking about. Now please, get out of my house." Clark said, pointing towards the front door.

"I'm afraid I cant do that." J'onn said as he crossed the space between them in a blur, punching Clark in the jaw, sending the man flying through the wall behind him and out into the yard.

Clark was on his feet as J'onn exited the side of the house; he sped at the Martian with amazing speed. Suddenly, before he collided with J'onn he stopped. Clark looked down at his shirt, which was torn on the chest, to reveal a bright yellow and red 'S' symbol.

Clark looked up at J'onn and smiled.

"Thanks J'onn. Lets get out of here my friend."

-GL-

"Ron Stoppable?"

Ron stopped at the top of the steps leading up to the United Nations. His eyes scanned the landing for the person who had just called his name. After a quick sweep, he located the person, and instantly took a step back.

"Whoa, what the hell." Ron muttered as he eyeballed the green skinned, beetle browed creature approaching him. "What the hell are you?"

"My name is J'onn J'onzz, the Martian Manhunter." J'onn replied. "We've met before, briefly Ronald. Or should I say Green Lantern."

"G-Green Lantern, what are you talking about." Ron stammered, confused.

"You know what I'm talking about." J'onn said as he closed the distance between the two and grabbed Ron by his right wrist.

"Hey!" Ron yelped. "Kim!"

J'onn brought Ron's hand up in front of his face and twisted it so the back of his hand was looking Ron right in the eye. On his middle finger, the most powerful weapon in the universe glowed a bright green.

"Remember?"

"I-I…Damnit." Ron muttered as J'onn let go of his grip.

"Ron!" Kim shouted as she came sprinting over to the two, sliding to a stop in between J'onn and Ron. "Step off greenie."

"It's alright Kim." Ron said placing a hand on Kim's shoulder. "He's a friend."

"We have to go Green Lantern. The world needs you." J'onn spoke softly.

"What are you talking about? What is he talking about?" Kim demanded her head darting back and forth between Ron and J'onn. "Ron?"

Kim's voice dimly registered in the back of his mind, as he looked longingly at his parents, specifically his mother, who was waiting at the front door to the Assembly Hall. His mother waved him over, as his father pointed at his wristwatch.

"This isn't real."

"I know. But it feels like it…and it's so perfect."

"It's supposed to. For what its worth, I'm sorry." J'onn offered.

"Yeah…me too." Ron sighed as he turned around to face J'onn and Kim. In a flash of green light his suit melted away to his Green Lantern uniform, sans the mask.

"Ron, what…what's going on here?" Kim said, her eyes wide at Ron's quick change.

"I'm sorry Kim…I'll see you in reality, I guess."

Ron grabbed her and hugged her tightly "Tell my mom I love her."

He pulled back as the mask materialized over his face.

"Let's go."

-GL-

Protex smiled as he checked the gauges in front of him. The machine was now pushing out energy levels at 85 capacity, and that number was rising. Within hours every human on the planet would be infected with uncontrollable rage and hate. It was truly beautiful.

His thoughts were interrupted by several screams from behind him. The gauge in front of him quickly dropped down to 65 capacity. Though he knew what had happened before he turned around, the sight still enraged him.

The five heroes who had been defeated moments before stood atop a heap of fallen Martian warriors. The loss of their minds would be a setback to the plans, but it was obvious now to Protex that he had underestimated their willpower. Too strong to be held captive, they would simply have to be killed.

"You've had your chance to surrender Protex, now…" Superman started.

"Less talking, more hurting." Lantern interrupted, emphasizing his point with a energy blast that struck Protex square in the chest, knocking him back into his control panel.

"Lantern wait!" Superman called as Lantern shot across the room, making a beeline for Protex.

"You son of a bitch!" Lantern cried as he reached Protex, blasting him across the face with a right hook. Lantern made a construct axe and raised it high above his head.

Lantern swung the axe down as Protex became intangible, the axe instead lodging in the control panel behind him. Sparks flew from the panel as a current raced through the axe back into Lantern, sending him flying backwards.

"Idiot!" Protex called as the machine burst into flames. "That will be the last thing you ever do."

Flash raced over to Green Lanterns side, helping the dazed hero up. "Nice shot bud."

Lanterns only response was an angry grunt.

"Then again…" Flash added as all of the Martians who were hooked into the machine began to rise from their chairs and move towards the heroes.

"Destroy them. Leave nothing but their bones." Protex declared.

"Looks like we're a bit out numbered." Wonder Woman said with a grimace.

"Those odds are about to even a little." J'onn said as he materialized through the floor into the room.

On cue, the main door to the hanger exploded inwards, sending several Martians who were moving around behind the heroes scattering. The Titans and Kim strode through the smoke, all in formation behind Nightwing.

"Mind if we join this party?" Arsenal asked, drawing his bow back.

"Not at all." Protex said. "Your deaths will be a welcome bonus."

Acting on those words the White Martians charged the heroes as one. Even with the arrival of the Titans the numbers were still in the Martians favor.

"Titans together!" Nightwing cried as his team surged forward, using whatever means at their disposal to attack the Martians.

"I hate to say it gang," Flash grunted as he spun his arms in circles, driving a few Martians back with gale force winds. "But we're not really getting anywhere with these guys."

"Flash is right." Wonder Woman agreed. "We may have to take a more…permanent approach to this situation."

"No, there has to be another way." Superman protested.

"I don't know if the new guy's opinion counts for anything, but I don't really think debating lethal force is going to put these guys away." Green Lantern chimed in as he deflected a blast of heat vision with a construct mirror.

"Do you still have your Phantom Zone generator?" Batman asked Superman, as the two moved back to back.

"Yes, its in the armory at my fortress, why?" Superman responded, referring to his Arctic Fortress of Solitude.

"Flash, go to the Fortress and get the Phantom Zone generator." Batman demanded.

"The what now?"

"It looks like a camera on a tripod. And bring back a mother box. It's the small black box. They're both in the armory."

"You got it boss." Flash said with a salute before breaking into a run. "I'll be back in two shakes…"

"Nightwing!" Batman called into the comlink. "Get your team to us immediately, I've got a…"

"…Of a lambs tail!" Flash finished as he skidded to a halt in front of Batman, with the requested devices under his arm.

"Superman, Wonder Woman, cover me while I set this up. J'onn and Flash, start clearing the way for the Titans to meet up with us. Lantern, save your strength for a moment."

"All right guys, we've gotta get to the others and quick. Batman's got a plan." Nightwing shouted to his team.

"Batman's always got a plan, he's just like you." Arsenal remarked as he fired a pair of arrows at a Martian blocking his path.

"Like father like son…" Troia said as she twirled a Martian around with her lasso, letting him fly to the other side of the room.

"There." Kim said, pointing ahead a red blur darting in-between Martians, knocking them out of the way. "It's the Flash."

"Good eye, Kim. Starfire?" Nightwing said glancing back and forth between the two redheads.

"With pleasure." Starfire said as she blasted the remaining Martians out of the way.

"We're here, what's the plan?" Arsenal demanded as the Titans joined the others, who seemed to be holding a perimeter around Batman and Green Lantern.

"Everyone get in close." Batman commanded.

"That's the plan? Group hug?" Changeling cracked, which earned him a sharp glare from the Batman.

Everyone huddled in close, still blasting away at the Martians, which now had them completely surrounded. Batman detached the Phantom Zone generator from the tripod and pressed a button on the control panel.

"On my mark Lantern." Batman said as he looked at the display on the device. When the number three appeared on the readout, Batman slid the device across the floor of the room. "Now!"

As soon as the device was out of the vicinity of the heroes, a green energy bubble went up around them. The Phantom Zone generator skidded to a halt and remained still for a moment. Then with a loud whirring noise, the front of it opened up producing a bright white light, which was expanding rapidly.

"No!" Protex shouted, as he realized what was happening. "Not again!"

Rapidly the White Martians began disappearing into the white void, some of them screaming, others caught completely off guard.

"J'onzz! You'll pay for this!" Protex screamed as he charged at the construct bubble, blasting away at it with his heat vision and fists. His final screams were cut off as he too disappeared into the void, and then a moment later, the white light faded, and the portal shut down with a hissing sound.

"Holy shit…" Green Lantern gasped as he dropped to his knees, his green force field vanishing. "So much force…pulling on me…"

"I can see why you got your ring pal." Flash said with a smile as he helped Lantern to his feet. No sooner was he on his feet and Kim had his arms wrapped around him.

"And the girls apparently." Flash added with a chuckle.

"You're all right, I was worried." Kim said as she looked up at her friend. "What?"

"Nothing." Lantern answered, realizing the strange look he was giving her. "Just beat."

"So for those of us who have no idea what just happened…"Changeling began, walking over and looking at the Phantom Zone generator. " Um, what just happened?"

"That device is a Phantom Zone generator." J'onn explained. "Batman set it on a timer to absorb anything organic."

"You sent them back to where they were originally imprisoned?" Wonder Woman asked.

"Hopefully they'll stay there this time." Cyborg said, rubbing the back of his neck. "One fight with these guys is more then enough."

"It's not over yet." Batman said as he picked up the generator. "There's still the cell on the west coast."

"Can you do that again Lantern?" Superman asked, putting his hand on Lanterns shoulder.

"Yeah, though I'd prefer it be a smaller group this time. I don't know if me or the ring has enough juice left for the whole mess of us again." Lantern replied, stepping away from Kim's embrace, still feeling slightly drained.

"We wont need as big a team for this." Batman said as he began fiddling with the mother box Flash had brought. "We just need to smash in and set off the generator. Volunteers?"

Superman and Wonder Woman and the Martian Manhunter immediately stepped forward.

"I think we can provide the smash." Wonder Woman said with a smile.

"Then let's go." Batman said as he pressed another button on the mother box.

BOOM

A portal opened in front of Batman, a building visible on the other side.

"This will take us right outside the Martians base on the West Coast. Lantern?"

"See you when I get back?" Lantern whispered to Kim.

"I'll be waiting." Kim smiled.

Lantern returned the smile and strode up next to Superman and the others. "You coming speedy?"

"If it's all the same to you guys, I'd like to get back to Central and Keystone. Make sure the riots are dying down." Flash replied.

"Go." Superman said. "We should be able to handle this."

Flash nodded and took off out the door, his parting words hanging in the air.

"Callmeifyouneedme."

The Batman led group stepped into the portal and with another BOOM, it closed behind them.

"Look." Starfire said, pointing to the sky that was visible through the roof of the hangar. "The clouds are starting to break."

"Then its over." Changeling sighed as he turned into a green dog, and flopped down on the hangar floor. "Just in time for a nap."

"Not quite." Nightwing said. "Anyone who's well enough come with me into the city. Emergency crews may need our help. Cyborg, can you stay here and get our security and monitoring systems back online?"

"I aim to please." Cyborg responded as he turned to head towards the monitor room.

"Everyone else, move out…address any situations as they present themselves, but stay in contact with Cyborg in case he finds anything more pressing."

The Titans nodded and dispersed. Those who could fly exited through the hangar roof, and those who couldn't moved to vehicles that would take them into the city.

"Kim." Nightwing called after the teen, who was following Arsenal to one of the Titans hovercrafts.

"Yeah?" She said, turning towards Nightwing.

"You can go home if you'd like, you've done more then enough for one day."

Kim smiled. "Thanks, but if there's still more I can do, I'm going to do it."

"I had a feeling you would say that. I guess the 'girl who can do anything' isn't an exaggeration." Nightwing said with a smile as they walked towards the hovercraft that Arsenal had running and ready to go.

"Hey…its no big." Kim chuckled.

-GL-

To be concluded…

Hello readers

This story arc will indeed be concluded with the next chapter. As usual I would like to thank everyone who read and reviewed, I hope I don't disappoint. Thanks also to Classic Cowboy for the help and support, and to Cylon One, I've really enjoyed your feedback. So I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter, and I'll see you all next time.

-R

Disclaimer-Story not for profit, characters are property of either DC Comics, or Disney.


	12. Reformation Pt 4

Chapter 12

Ron swung the door to his apartment open and stumbled through, into the darkness that waited for him. He reached for the light switch and flipped it up and groaned when nothing happened.

"Well I guess that explains why no one has any lights on in the building." He muttered to himself. "Dashes my hopes of everyone having gone to bed early. Anyone here?"

Satisfied by the silence that answered him, Ron held his right fist up and illuminated the room in a soft glow of green light. He navigated the small building to the kitchen, where he located a pack of candles and matches. One by one he lit the candles and strategically placed them throughout his apartment, until finally it was light enough to get by.

'Now for a scalding hot shower and two days of sleep.' Ron thought as he made his way to the bathroom. 'I wonder where Kim is.'

Ron placed a candle on the bathroom sink and gingerly began to peel his clothes off. The task was made difficult by the fact that every muscle in his body was screaming in agony. Once that chore was completed, he leaned over with a groan and twisted the knob in the shower that would give his muscles the sweet release that hot water provided.

As he twisted the knob, Ron heard the pipes behind the wall rumble softly. Curious, he looked to the showerhead for answers. Usually a hard steamy blast of water would be flowing out. Tonight however, only one lonely drop worked its way out, splashing uselessly to the bottom of the tub.

"Oh, for the love of…no water either?" Ron cried in frustration, flopping down on the closed lid of the toilet. "Help saved the whole blamed world and I can't even take a hot shower! What a gyp."

Ron was jolted from his ranting by the rattling of his front door. "Ron?" Kim's voice called to him from the opening.

"Just a second, KP!" Ron called out, surprised at how much effort it took to raise his voice that much. He struggled to his feet, and moved to the door of the bathroom. Satisfied with the cover of darkness the power outage provided, he ducked into his bedroom to grab some clothes.

Moments later he emerged wearing a pair of sweatpants and a well worn Middleton High School t-shirt.

"Hey KP." He said with a wave.

"Ron." Kim said with a smile, as she closed the distance between them to give Ron a hug, which caused a low moan to escape his lips.

"How was the West coast?" She asked after breaking the embrace.

"Good." Ron replied, flopping down into his chair. "It was like Batman said. We pretty much just blasted in and sucked everything into the Phantom Zone. What did you do while I was gone, you look like you've seen some more action."

Kim nodded and looked down at herself. Her mission shirt and pants were torn in several places, the exposed skin bruised in spots, bloodied in others. Her face was streaked with black soot.

"I went with the Titans into the city to help control the riots. Do you have anything clean I can put on?" Kim asked as she walked towards the door and kicked off her shoes.

"In my room, the dresser or the laundry basket next to it is clean." Ron replied. "So how did that go?

"Not bad, it was rough at first, but everyone started coming to their senses pretty quickly." Kim said, talking louder as she went into Ron's room in search of something clean. "You'll never guess…hey, you mind if I crash here tonight? It's kind of late to try and get a ride back home."

"You don't have to ask KP, you know your welcome. What time is it anyway? I've got boom tube lag."

"Ha! It's a little after two in the morning. And thanks."

"You wont be thanking me if you want to take a shower, I already used the only drop I had."

"I figured that, the city crew is working on the water main up the street, who knows how that got broke." Kim said as she came out of Ron's room wearing one of his older red hockey jerseys.

She made her way across the room and flopped down on the couch, sighing contently as she did so. Across the room Ron was thankful for the low light, because he couldn't help but take in Kim's long bare legs.

"So anyway," Kim continued. "You'll never guess who I had to bail out of jail."

"Arsenal?"

"No, though that doesn't seem like a bad guess." Kim laughed. "Bonnie and Monique!"

"No kiddin'?"

"Yeah, seems they went out after we left and got affected by the whole thing. Luckily they didn't hurt anyone, or themselves, and the police released them into my custody. They're doing that with most of the people they picked up, since no one was really acting under their own devices."

"That's good I suppose." Ron said, fatigue pulling at his eyelids.

The two sat in silence for a couple moments before Kim spoke up.

"Ron I wanted to talk to you about something…when I kissed you in the Tower. I was thinking…"

Ron interrupted her with a loud snore.

"Ron?" Kim asked louder, but the only response she got was more snoring.

She sighed, but smiled. A conversation for another day she decided as she pulled herself off the couch and began blowing out the candles. Before extinguishing the last one, she found two blankets and a pillow. Keeping the pillow and a blanket for herself, she threw the other one over Ron.

"Night Hero." She said softly as she put the last candle out.

-GL-

Footsteps sounded softly on cold steel floors, as two figures moved through otherwise silent hallways. The two paused, and one turned, finding a window to gaze out of.

"That's where Krypton was." Superman said with a hint of sadness in his voice.

The other figure in the hallway said nothing, but followed Superman's gaze to a cluster of stars that twinkled light years away.

"So your sure of this Bruce?" Superman said finally, breaking his gaze away from the window. "You've never been much of a team player."

"I never will be." Batman responded. "But I'm sure someone with your capable eyesight can see as well as I the need for this."

"I do." Superman nodded. "And this moon base will make a fine headquarters once it's completed."

"Until then, the old satellite headquarters will suffice." Batman said, looking out a window to see several robots piecing together steel girders in the cold of space. "We need to be up here, to monitor…make sure nothing like what happened last week happens again.

Superman nodded. Almost a full week had passed since the attempted invasion of Earth. Rescue crews were still working to find survivors in some of the harder hit areas. Meanwhile most of Earths population was trying to come to grips with what they may have done while under the influence of the White Martians.

"So who do you have in mind?" Superman asked.

Batman pulled a folder from the folds of his cape and offered it to Superman.

"I've put together a few names. I think we should start small at first."

"Uh huh." Superman said as he mulled over the list of names. "The new Green Lantern eh?"

"You disapprove?"

"No he handled himself well. I'm surprised you trust him though."

"I don't trust anyone." Batman growled. "But this kid is not Hal Jordan. I think his background will prevent that."

"Already figured out who he is, I see." Superman shook his head. "So when do we start?"

"Tonight, 9 o'clock."

-GL-

Ron groaned as he rolled over in his chair. The bright morning sun was streaming through the window, blasting away at his face.

"Mm, Kim…turn offthasun…" Ron mumbled as he struggled towards awareness. "Kim?"

Ron sat up in his chair and stretched his arms wide. A few muscles popped, but he felt pretty good.

'Couldn't have gotten that much sleep, but I feel pretty good.' Ron thought as he stood up and stretched his legs.

"Kim?" He called walking into the kitchen to get a glass of water.

"Powers back." Ron commented to himself as he noticed the flashing clock. "How about the water?"

"Booyah." Ron smiled as a burst of clear water erupted from his faucet. After a couple of long satisfying gulps, Ron's eyes fell upon a piece of paper that was placed on the center of his table. He made his way over and picked the letter up.

_Ron, _

_I left for home this morning. Sorry I didn't say goodbye, but I don't think I could have woken you up if I wanted to. I wanted to stay, but I need to make sure everything is all right back home, I'm sure you understand. Call me when you get a chance. _

_Love Always, _

Kim 

"Well that sucks." Ron declared as he flopped down on the couch. "Have to give her a call later in the day."

Ron flipped on the television and switched it to the local channel, hoping he hadn't missed the morning news.

"…day three of the cleanup continues here in New York as well as in cities across the country. We go now to Adam Williams who is live near Times Square…"

"Day three?" Ron cried. 'That can't be right.'

Ron leapt up and ran into his bedroom, where his cell phone rested on the nightstand. Ignoring the 'New Voicemail' notification, he glanced to the time and date. Sure enough, it was three days past when he had helped to stop the invasion.

"Good god, I've been asleep for three days." Ron gasped. "I must have been really tired."

A knock at the door jolted Ron from his thoughts. Making his way into the living room he opened the door to find Monique standing there with a concerned look on her face, that quickly changed to relief.

"Ron your ok!" She cried, wrapping her arms around his neck, and then pulling back with her nose crinkled. "You've smelled better…but your ok."

Ron smiled, "Sorry I've been sleeping."

"For three days? Kim was worried and sent me over." Monique said as she took Ron's invitation into the apartment.

"Aw, Kim." Ron slapped his forehead. "She told me to call when I got up, and I didn't. She probably hates me. Again."

"Chill out boy, she's not mad." Monique smiled. "You can call her later and apologize for being the world's heaviest sleeper."

"I'll call now."

"Bad time, she's got a thing for school."

"Oh." Ron said, looking downwards.

"Aw, poor Ron." Monique cooed as she sauntered over to him. "I know what you need."

"Uh?"

"Yeah." Monique smiled lifting his chin with her finger. "Some Bueno Nacho. My treat, but you've got to shower first."

Ron smiled and shook his head. "I do have a three day appetite built up." He said as he made his way towards the bathroom.

-GL-

Kim tapped her pen anxiously on the small arm rest desk in front of her. She had no desire to be in the lecture hall on this day. Unfortunately for her, attendance was required for today's guest speaker in Woman's Role, a class Kim constantly regretted taking.

'Probably another boring old Girl Power hippie.' Kim thought as her pencil tapping reached a fever pitch. 'I wonder if Monique got a hold of Ron…'

"Hey!" The student sitting next to her hissed, as he pointed at Kim's pencil. "Cut that out would ya?"

"Oh, sorry." Kim replied with a blush.

Kim placed her pencil back in her duffel bag and rested her elbows on the desk placing her chin in her hands. After a couple moments the professor stepped up to the front of the class and quieted the crowd.

"Ladies and gentlemen. I'm not going to take much time with introductions here, so not to take away from her speech. So let me just say it is proud to introduce today's speaker, Donna Troy."

Kim's eyes widened, along with every pair of male eyes, as Donna strode in from a side hallway on to the stage. She was greeted with a modest applause, to which she waved, almost sheepishly.

"Troia?" Kim said softly. It was hard to imagine this was the same fierce warrior Kim had fought alongside days earlier. In place of her spandex costume was a smart looking business suit, making Donna look more like the CEO of a company then a superhero.

"Good afternoon everyone." Donna said as she settled in at the podium. "I usually leave this kind of thing to my sister Diana, but she's a little busy today so she asked me to fill in. I'm going to talk for a little bit, and if there's anyone still awake when I'm done, I'll open the floor to questions."

Kim joined the rest of the class in a chuckle and leaned back in her chair, much more attentive then she was five minutes ago.

'Maybe this won't be so bad after all.' She thought as Donna began her speech.

-GL-

Ron had to admit Monique was right for once. Sleeping for three straight days had given him quite the appetite. And once that was taken care of, he worked up another one being hauled halfway across the city on a shopping trip.

Ron shook his head at Monique's logic as he walked into his apartment.

"Whenever I do something stupid…say get arrested for rioting…I feel lousy. So I try to do something to cheer myself up. Like shopping!" Monique had said with a childish gleam in her eye.

Most of the time spent in the city Ron had been mentally kicking himself for his three-day slumber. He saw several situations that Green Lantern could have helped.

How many lives could have been saved if not for his laziness?

Ron grunted and flopped down in his chair. Thoughts like that would make for a lot of long nights. Though, as Monique had said…when feeling lousy, do something to feel better.

Ron stood up and in a flash of light was dressed in his Green Lantern uniform. Making his way to the window, he noticed something out of place. The window was open, and a medium sized manila folder was taped to the windowsill.

Upon closer inspection Ron found his Green Lantern symbol was drawn on the front of the envelope.

"Great." Ron groaned. "Someone knows who I am."

Curiosity abounded as he removed it from windowsill and tore it open. He emptied the contents onto the counter and was surprised when a small keycard and a piece of paper fell to the table.

"_Wayne Tech. Sub Basement Four. Nine O'clock Sharp." _

"Must be what the key card is for." Ron surmised, then glanced at the clock, which read 7:15.

Ron slid the keycard into a hidden pocket on his uniform and made his way out the window. He had enough time to do some recon on the building and make sure it wasn't a trap.

'But why some one would want to trap little old' me is beyond me' Ron thought with a smile as he sailed through the sky.

-GL-

Kim pushed her way through the crowd, which was made difficult by the fact that everyone was going in the opposite direction of her.

Kim had planned on going down to see Donna after her speech, but apparently so had everyone else in the room. Wide-eyed college boys, and inspired college girls clamored down the narrow aisles to the front of the lecture hall. Kim decided to just take her leave.

'With Ron connected in that community now, I'm sure our paths will cross eventually.' Kim thought as she finally made her way out of the building. 'Ron…I should call him again.'

Kim pulled out her cell phone and dialed Ron's number as she walked towards The Up, the college's trendy internet/coffee/poetry café. Her walk allowed enough time for three calls, all of which went to Ron's voicemail.

Now at The Up, Kim sighed and found an empty table in the corner. Maybe Ron was out doing the hero thing. Kim decided to check the news sites for any sightings of Green Lantern.

No more had she settled in and logged her Kimmunicator onto the net when a voice interrupted the process.

"So you didn't want to stay for an autograph?"

Kim turned around in her chair to find Donna standing there with a red slushy and a smile on her face.

"Donna." Kim smiled as she stood up and gave the woman a hug, which was returned in kind. "Loved the speech, join me?"

"Sure," Donna replied as she took the seat at the table across Kim. "The speech is really mostly my sisters, but we hold the same ideals so it isn't very hard to make her words my own."

"Whatever works." Donna shrugged, before taking a sip of her slushy.

"Worked well enough to get the classes attention." Kim grinned.

"Hera…tell me about it." Donna cringed. "I didn't know I had rock star status."

"Well you are a big time superhero."

"Do you get that kind of thing?"

"Me?" Kim chuckled. "Not really. I've been around this area since forever, so no one really pays me any mind."

Donna nodded. "I only really get recognized if I'm announced. Which is kind of odd considering I've been doing the hero thing since I was a kid, and I've never really tried to have a secret identity."

"I've never been big on the whole secret identity thing either."

"I don't begrudge anyone for keeping one, I can understand wanting to stay out of the public spotlight when you're off duty, and wanting to keep ones loved ones safe." Donna said with a sad look. "Even if it means pushing them away."

"Yeah tell me about it." Kim grunted, then stopped and raised an eyebrow at Donna. "What did you mean by that?"

"Well, it's usually what happens." Donna shrugged. "And it's kind of obvious that's what happened with you and Ron."

"You know?" Kim's eyes widened. "Great, now Ron's never going to want to be seen with me."

"Well, its only obvious if you know things most people don't." Donna assured her. "And besides, you don't grow up with the worlds second greatest detective and not pick up a few things. You miss him don't you?"

"I do." Kim sighed. "I didn't at first, because I was so mad at the way he left. But then when I saw him again…I don't know, it just hit me…how much I missed him."

"Wish you could be closer to him again?"

"Yeah, but he'd never come back here. He thinks he would be putting everyone in danger around here. Which I guess, considering what happened…" Kim's voice trailed off as her mind wandered to the horrors of the night Ron's mother was brutally murdered.

"Why don't you go to him?" Donna said, as she reached down into her leather shoulder bag and began rummaging through some papers.

"I thought about it." Kim admitted. "But I can't really afford it. I never had time to take up a job and save money. Plus I want to put my time in here at the community college to get all my electives out of the way. What are you looking for?"

Donna looked up from her bag and smiled at Kim. "This." She replied as slid a manila folder with the Titans logo on it across the table to Kim.

Kim scrunched her brow as she opened the folder and flipped through its contents, verbally checking them off.

"Transfer papers? Letters of recommendation? An address and a pass code? What is all this Donna?

"They're yours. If you want to be a Titan that is."

-GL-

8:50

Lantern looked at his watch one last time before he descended down to the darkened city streets. After a few flybys of the building in question, and the surrounding area, he had determined that the Wayne Tech building was free of traps. And free of people for that matter.

Lantern made his way to the front door, and produced his key card. With one last cautious look over his shoulder, he slid the card into its slot and waited for the worst.

Instead of the expected disaster, a green light on the card panel flashed, and the sound of deadbolts sliding out of their slots filled the night air.

Lantern made his way through the front door, jumping slightly when the door slammed shut behind him, the locks sliding back into place. He took a quick survey of his surroundings, which seemed to be overly ordinary.

"Onto sub basement four I suppose." Lantern muttered to himself as he found a bay of elevators off to the side, behind what he supposed was a receptionist's desk during business hours.

One of the elevators was open, and Lantern stepped inside. He noticed the absence of sub basement four on the control panel. As he was about to try a different elevator, he noticed another slot for his keycard. Lantern slowly slid it in. No sooner had the card cleared, then the elevator doors slammed shut, and the car shot downwards at speeds that put Lanterns stomach in his throat.

Seconds later the elevator stopped, and the door slid open with a chime. Lantern shot out of the car quickly, muttering a curse under his breath as he did so.

"Next time I take the stairs." He growled, before he looked around to take in sub basement four.

To Lanterns surprise, sub basement four was surprisingly small. He had been expecting a massive lair, filled to the top with every villain he had ever encountered. Instead, it was a small room, filled only with the elevator, and a platform just big enough for a person to stand on, and a control panel facing outwards from the panel.

Lantern walked up to the panel and gave it a glance. There seemed to be no buttons, just a blank screen. As he stared down at it, the screen came to life, bathing Lanterns face in a blue light.

"Identity confirmed. Green Lantern, Stoppable, Ronald. Destination: Satellite. Please step forward."

"Lovely, even the computer voice knows who I am." Lantern muttered as he stepped on to the platform and crossed his arms. "Maybe I should go public, get a book deal or something make some mon…aahhh!"

Lanterns ramblings were interrupted as the platform glowed blue, breaking his molecular structure down and sending it hurtling towards parts unknown.

-GL-

"Me? A Titan?" Kim gasped at Donna, who simply smiled.

"Why not?"

"Well you guys are…Titans! Teen Titans, former. Not to mention the protégés of the world's greatest heroes. And I'm…well I'm not."

"Kim," Donna began, leaning forward. "You've saved the world several times, have you not."

Kim nodded.

"You've been doing it since you were, what fourteen?"

"Thirteen actually." Kim corrected her, trying not to sound smug.

"Not to mention you handled yourself amazingly against the Martians." Donna said. "You proved to anyone that had doubts that your ready for the…big time, as you put it."

Kim looked down at the papers in front of her, completely unsure of what to do.

"We could use you on the team Kim." Donna finally said. "Garth…Tempest…he still hasn't recovered from the attack. The doctors at STAR labs don't know if he will at all. Changeling is going to take a leave of absence to try to jump-start his acting career…again. And with Nightwing splitting his time between the team and his city…we're often short handed."

"But…" Kim began trying to think of a protest.

"No buts." Donna said sternly. "Everything is taken care of. Those transfer papers are for a community college outside of the city. You'll have your own room at the Tower, which I might add puts most apartments to shame. You'll get to do a lot of good on a larger scale."

"Not to mention." Donna smiled. "You'll be closer to Ron again."

Kim looked down at the folder for several moments before she looked up into the expectant face of Donna Troy.

"Well." Kim said, biting back a smile. "I'm in."

-GL-

"Oh god." Lantern groaned as he stumbled off of the platform. He could feel his mouth rapidly filling with saliva. Unfortunately he knew what was coming next. His eyes frantically searched the room for a trash can but it was too late.

"Bleeeeechhh." Lantern gagged as he tossed the day's lunch onto the cold steel floor.

"Holy….bleeeeeech." Lantern gasped, as the bile pushed its way back through his throat.

Lantern braced himself up against the wall, breathing heavily, and trying to get the taste of puke out of his mouth.

"First time you've teleported I see?"

Lantern slowly turned his head to the voice, hoping it wasn't an enemy. Instead he found the Green Arrow looking at him with a slight grin, which almost hid a bit of pity.

"Green..kaff..kaff." Lantern started, but was reduced to a coughing fit that almost made him throw up again.

"Easy kid." Green Arrow said as he helped steady the younger man. "You'll feel better in a couple minutes. And don't worry, the second time isn't nearly as bad."

"Second time my ass." Lantern wheezed as he realized he wasn't in sub basement four anymore. "Where the hell are we anyway? And did you say teleported?"

"That's right." Arrow responded. "You just teleported from your city, to a satellite orbiting the Earth. And before you try to have me committed, lets remember what's on your finger kid."

Lantern smiled and followed Green Arrows gaze out a window that resembled a porthole on a ship. Sure enough, there was Earth off in the distance surrounded by the endless black of outer space.

"Amazing." Lantern muttered, his stomach finally settling back down. "But what are we doing here?"

"Well, I've got my suspicions." Green Arrow began as he let Lantern stand on his own. "But I'll let Big Blue say it himself."

"Big Blue?" Lantern said as he followed Green Arrow out of the room and down a hallway. "I'm confused."

Arrow just smiled as he pressed a button on the wall next to a closed door. The door hissed open and Green Arrow motioned Lantern in.

The room resembled an observation deck. It was wide open, with an elevated pedestal in the middle of the room. The steel ceiling slowly gave way to glass, which made for an amazing view of outer space.

"Glad you could make it Green Lantern, Green Arrow." A voice echoed across the room.

Lantern followed it to the base of the pedestal where Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, and the Martian Manhunter all stood.

"Wow." Lantern breathed. "Uh, sorry I'm late?"

"Actually," Superman smiled. "You're right on time."

"First off I would like to apologize for the short notice of this gathering, and the surprise notifications some of you may have received." Superman continued. "But this is something that has already waited to long, and really shouldn't be put off any longer."

"Everyone here knows about the attempted invasion earlier this week. Most of us worked together thwarting it."

"Most of us? Don't start with that shit, blue." Green Arrow replied angrily. "Just because I wasn't with your little team doesn't mean I wasn't doing my part in Star City. Not all of us have the means to just take off cross country and…"

"Zip it Queen." Batman growled, cutting off the Green Arrows rant. Arrow responded by glaring at the Batman, locking eyes with him for a moment, before looking away with a grunt."

"Anyways." Superman sighed. "I wasn't trying to single you out Oliver, and I'm not belittling your work in Star City during the invasion. What lead to the invasion attempt is unacceptable. We were caught totally unprepared."

"That's a bit of an understatement." Flash scoffed. "We got caught with our pants down around our ankles."

"And our super powered butts hanging in the breeze." Lantern added with more confidence then he expected. The remark earned him a chuckle from Green Arrow and a good-natured slap on the back from Flash.

"Not how I would have worded it," Superman smiled, "but you two are exactly right. There needs to be people watching for things like this. Not just threats from space, but threats on Earth itself, be it natural disasters, psychopaths…whatever."

"The Titans and Justice Society are both fine teams." Batman spoke up. "However, they lack in certain areas that are required to act on a global scale. What we need to accomplish here is something that can respond to any threat quickly, and neutralize said threat."

"So we're all up here to build Big Brother or what?" Green Arrow scoffed.

"No." Superman responded. "We're here to build the Justice League. And the seven of us are going to be the foundation."

Murmurs worked their way through those gathered as Lanterns eyes went wide.

"Oh great." Green Arrow snorted. "That's just what the world needs. This floating fascist clubhouse bouncing around in orbit, dispensing forth the power of God whenever we see fit. I'm the only one who has a problem with it?"

"The Justice League?" Lantern whispered to himself.

"We won't be floating. The new watchtower is currently being constructed on the surface of the moon." Superman said with a proud smile.

"Oh, well that's just so much better." Arrow threw his hands up in the air as he turned around and walked through the crowd of heroes back towards the door he and Lantern had come in. "Count me out."

"Ollie." Batman spoke, stopping Green Arrow in his tracks. "How many casualties in Star City?"

"Twenty-five." Arrow said softly, not bothering to turn around. "And a couple hundred injuries serious enough to require hospital time."

"There was more then double that in Gotham City." Said Batman walking from the front of the crowd down towards Green Arrow. "What would you have done to prevent those deaths and injuries if you could?"

"Anything." Arrow said slowly turning around, seeing where Batman was going.

"Don't you think this would help?" Batman said waving his arm to indicate the room and the other heroes. "If we had someone up here monitoring deep space, we could have launched a preemptive strike against the Martians, or at the very least been able to deal with an attack quicker."

Green Arrow and Batman stared at each other for a moment, before Batman took a step closer to him.

"You and I are more alike then we care to admit. You know I wouldn't be a part of this if I didn't think it a good idea. And there are…fail safes in place to insure that this remains a good idea." Batman said just loud enough so that Green Arrow was the only one able to hear.

Green Arrow looked at Batman for a moment and then began scanning the faces of the others in the room, who were moving around so they were all closer to Batman and Green Arrow.

"Fine." Arrow huffed with a smile. "I'm in. Just so I can make sure you guys are running things properly around here." Then his features hardened into a frown. "And no membership cards this time either!"

The others laughed, and a couple clapped Green Arrow on the back.

"Does anyone else have any concerns before we make this official." Superman asked after the laughter had died down. "All jokes aside, the Justice League will have to be the world's first and last line of defense in all situations. We all put ourselves in danger on a regular basis, but in the League we will face threats greater then we might as individuals."

"Then I guess its good that this is a team sport now." Lantern smiled.

"Indeed." Superman said, matching Lanterns smile as he placed his hand out into the middle of the group. It hung there for a moment before six other hands covered it.

"Welcome to the Justice League everybody."

It was all Lantern could do to keep his smile from splitting his face open as the words left Superman's mouth. Years of playing second fiddle to Kim Possible, months of trying to atone for his initial failures as a Green Lantern: it felt like it was starting to pay off for Ron Stoppable.

More then ever he felt like the hero he wanted and needed to be. Green Lantern, member of the Justice League of America.

'Nice ring to it' Lantern thought as his smile only widened.

-GL-

-Well that's the end of that storyline. Ron's a Justice Leaguer now and Kim's a Titan. I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. Fear not, more is coming soon. I'm going to take a break from the big huge stories for a while and do maybe 1 or 2 one-chapter stand alone stories. Then, if I stick to my plan ill be doing a big ol story arc that will bring some classic characters in that haven't made their GL/KP appearance yet.

As always I appreciate the feedback I've been getting from everyone. Classic, thanks for your help and support. Cylon, as always thank you for your detailed feedback. Chefjet as far as your questions go…I'm not really going to go into the Parallax thing to much. That's more of a Hal Jordan story then it would be a Ron Stoppable story. I may address it, but if I do it will be way down the road. And I guess I'm kind of going in the direction of the comics, because there are things in the comics that Kyle Rayner has done or accomplished that I would like to see Ron accomplish as well. I'm sure anyone that's familiar with GL comics from the last few years can guess what I'm talking about. But Ron will definitely take a different path to accomplish those goals then Kyle did. So until next time everyone take it easy.

-R


	13. Family

Chapter 13

Family

Ron pulled the hood of his hooded sweatshirt up over his head and pulled the drawstrings tight, making an attempt to fend off the cold breeze that was assaulting him. It didn't matter what the temperature was, it always seemed cold whenever he came here.

It was one of the reasons that Ron hated coming to this place. That and the memories that always came with it. Good memories Ron could enjoy at home, but here…nothing but the bad.

He made his way off the weed ridden gravel path and onto the grass. He absentmindedly noticed names on the way to his destination. In the back of his mind some new names and dates registered, but they didn't really concern him. There was only one name and date he was there for, and it lay just ahead at the end of his well-known journey.

_Jennifer Stoppable _

_1964-2004_

_Beloved Wife and Mother_

"Hey Mom." Ron said as he kneeled down in front of the tombstone and ran his fingers over the inscription. He reached into the pocket of his sweatshirt and pulled out a half dozen roses, wrapped in green paper. He laid them on the base of the tombstone and smiled.

"I see the groundskeepers here haven't gotten any better." Ron sighed as he pulled some weeds and over grown grass away from the base of the tombstone. "There we go. That's better."

"Sorry I haven't been by to see you more." Ron began as he sat down in the grass and glanced around. "I've been busy lately, with the hero thing. But you'll be happy to know Kim and I are friends again. She was in town…an old enemy of ours was starting trouble…and we kind of talked everything out."

"I still don't know if it's a good idea or not, her being around me…but she doesn't seem to care. And with her living in Middleton and me in New York, I don't think it will put her at that big of a risk. And before you ask, no we aren't dating yet." Ron said with a smile.

"She did kiss me the other day though." Ron mused. "I think that was more of a 'we might never see each other again' thing though. Truth be told, there's another girl I've kind of taken an interest in. I haven't seen her in a week or two, once again…busy, but she seems like a pretty awesome girl."

Ron paused and rolled the sleeve of his sweatshirt back to glance at his wristwatch.

"I think I've got enough time to tell you how I met her. I'm meeting Kim for lunch in an hour. So anyways…"

-GL-

It was in Indiana somewhere, I think. I had just been out doing some flying around, when I saw some major explosions going on down below. Naturally I swooped down to investigate.

Green Lantern hovered over the spot where the explosion had just occurred. Near as he could tell, the smoking pile of rubble had been an old airplane hangar a few minutes ago. Turning his gaze to the rest of the area Lantern noticed he was in the middle of an old airfield, probably abandoned for years. The airstrip was cracked and overgrown with weeds, and several old planes sat in ruin and disrepair.

There was one plane that stuck out to me though. Now I'm no Batman, but anyone could see this plane had taken some pretty recent damage. I zipped over there, and there she was, lying down in front of it…

"Hey are you alright?" Green Lantern asked the girl, who was struggling to her feet.

"I'll live." The girl responded, standing up and turning towards Lantern. "I've been hit…harder…anyway."

Lanterns eyes went wide behind his mask. The girl in front of him wasn't the civilian he thought her to be. She wore a blue long sleeved shirt that stopped just below her breasts showing off a nicely toned stomach. A large white star was on her chest, with similar stars going down her sleeves. Around her waist was a fancy looking red belt that, Lantern guessed, served a purpose besides holding up her blue and white spandex shorts.

A mask covered most of her face, but even with it Lantern could tell she was beautiful. She brushed her blonde hair out of her face and smiled at Lantern.

"Hi." She said softly.

"…Hi." Lantern finally managed to get out. "I'm…"

"Green Lantern. It's nice to meet you." The girl said extending her hand, which Lantern shook. "I'm Stargirl."

"Nice to meet you to Stargirl." Lantern said, finally regaining his composure. "So was that old hangar starting up with you?"

Stargirl smiled, and Lantern felt his heart flop around in his chest.

"No. That's funny though. Actually it was…" Star Girl began.

"Solomon Grundy!" A voice called from behind them. "Born on a Monday!"

Yeah, that's just what a guy wants to see when he first meets a beautiful girl. Some ashen half dead behemoth charging at you.

"Get behind me!" Lantern demanded as Grundy charged towards them with surprising speed.

Stargirl complied, and Lantern formed a construct brick wall in front of them. The wall held off the initial blow from Grundy, but cracks soon began to form.

"Grundy smash!"

"Ok…any ideas here?" Lantern asked glancing over his shoulder at the blonde.

"Yeah." Stargirl replied as she pulled a small golden rod from a holster on her belt. As she pulled the rod out it extended to its full length, about 6 feet. It had a knob at the business end that resembled part of a star, and had a bit of a glow to it. "Grundy hits hard. We hit him harder."

Just as Stargirl finished her sentence, Lanterns wall finally gave way to Grundy's fist. He plowed through towards the heroes, only to be blasted back by an energy bolt from the end of Stargirl's weapon.

As Grundy staggered off balance Stargirl flew in and grabbed Grundy by his tattered shirt collar. In one fluid motion she spun him around and threw him about a hundred yards.

"I like your style." Lantern smiled as he took off towards where Grundy was going to land. As soon as Grundy hit the ground, Lantern dropped a construct boulder on his head. Over and over again.

"And I like yours." Stargirl said with a smile as she floated up towards where Lantern hovered.

Her smile made Lantern lose his focus just enough from Grundy to punch through the boulder. The pair of heroes looked downwards to see Grundy standing in a crater, visibly mad.

"Shall we?" Stargirl asked as she aimed her weapon at Grundy.

"Oh, lets." Lantern said aiming his ring.

In unison the two fired. Bright green energy and bright yellow energy collided with pale dead skin. Grundy let out one final yelp before falling to the ground as the energy blasts stopped.

"Solomon…Grundy…born on a...Monday." Grundy muttered as he drifted into unconsciousness.

"Yeah, yeah." Stargirl sighed. "Born on a Monday…"

"Died on a Tuesday." Lantern added with a smirk.

"Oh, so you have heard Grundy's rant before." Stargirl said as she twirled her rod around in her hand and set it underneath her, using it as a bench of sorts.

"Rant?" Lantern said, confused. "I don't know. It just seemed fitting…because it is Tuesday ya know."

"Right." Stargirl laughed, and then turned her expression serious, as she circled Green Lantern on her rod. "So you're the new Green Lantern huh?"

"More or less."

"I like what you've done with the uniform. More modern, less military."

"Thanks, it took a while to get right, but I think I've got it." Lantern said proudly. "So are you from out around here?"

"Oh, no. I'm from another lame state and town with nothing to do." Stargirl replied with a huff. "I was just flying home when I saw Grundy. What about you?"

"No, I was just out flying around." Lantern said as he looked down to see police cars and Meta-Human containment units arriving to collect Grundy. "Flying helps clear my mind…but it never fails some schmuck is always causing trouble when I just want to zoom around and think."

"I hear ya. Comes with the job though I guess."

"Yeah, I'm learning that pretty quick. So what's with the pole?" Lantern asked pointing at Stargirl's rod.

"It's my cosmic rod!" Stargirl said proudly. "Starman gave it to me. I'm kind of carrying on his legacy and tradition. It let's me fly, and shoots those energy blasts."

"Kick ass." Lantern said as he circled her examining the cosmic rod.

"Are you just checking out my butt?" Stargirl asked as she spun around and shot Lantern an accusing look that faded into a smirk.

"I..well…no!"

Stargirl laughed. "Sure, sure. But anyways I've got to get going. Gotta be home in time for dinner."

"Well it was nice meeting you." Lantern said as the blush faded from his face. "We'll have to do it again sometime."

"Anytime green jeans." Stargirl replied. "Lets try it sometime without the bad guys."

It took me about three more hours of flying before I realized she meant go out on a date. I couldn't figure out what the point of a team up was without the villain. Naturally I played it cool…

"You betcha SG." Lantern smiled.

"SG, cute." Star Girl said as she drifted away. "Look me up at the JSA mansion. We're in the book. Tootles Ringer."

"See ya."

-GL-

"If nothing else, this gig is a great way to meet girls." Ron said with a smile. "I actually just met Wonder Woman and her sister Troia the other day. They're even more beautiful in person then they are on the television. Taller too."

"Which brings me to my next big announcement. Ready for it?" Ron said as his grin spread like wildfire across his face. "Your son is in the Justice League!"

"That's right. I'm really starting to move up in the world. You should see this joint they've got on the moon…I've been on the moon. It's not done yet, but when it is…holy cow."

Ron was about to continue when his watch started beeping.

"Whoops. I've got one more quick stop to make and then its time to meet KP." Ron said, looking at his watch as he stood up. "You know how Kim hates to be kept waiting."

"I'll try to visit more often Mom." Ron leaned over and kissed the top of the tombstone. "I love you."

He stood there for a moment more, looking longingly at the marble tombstone, and the name and date etched into it. With a soft smile he turned and walked away, heading towards his next destination.

-GL-

The doorbell at the Possible house rang loudly throughout the house, its cheerful melody alerting everyone to the presence of a visitor.

"Now I wonder who that could be." Mrs. Possible said to her husband, as she got up from the kitchen table she was currently sharing with her husband.

"Hmn." Mr. Possible grunted, not looking up from the newspaper. "Maybe its someone with the answer to today's suduko. Moderate levels my rocket scientist ass."

Mrs. Possible peered through the peephole, but frowned when she saw that their visitor was wearing a hooded sweatshirt with the hood pulled up to hide his face.

'Probably a friend of Kimmie's,' she thought as she opened the door.

"Hello?"

"Good afternoon. I was wondering if I could interest you in buying an entire set of Encyclopedias?"

"I'm sorry, we're not interested." Mrs. Possible responded, as she started to shut the door.

"Well, how about a new vacuum cleaner Mrs. Dr. P?"

Mrs. Possible stopped in her tracks. It had been quite a bit since anyone had called her that. And she only knew of one person that ever did.

"Ron?"

Ron flipped down his hood, and grinned. "How'd ya guess?"

Mrs. Possible smiled, and swung the door back open, grabbing the young man in a tight embrace, which he gladly returned.

"Same old Ron." Mrs. Possible said affectionately. "Come in Ron."

"Thanks." Ron replied. "I can't stay to long though, I'm meeting Kim for lunch in a bit."

"She told me you two were speaking again." Mrs. P said as she led Ron into the kitchen. "I knew it wouldn't be long."

"Longer then I wanted." Ron said with a sigh.

"Well you know how our Kimmie can be. James, look who's here!"

Mr. Possible looked up from the newspaper at the young man standing in front of him. They hadn't seen each other since Mrs. Stoppable's funeral. And they hadn't really spoken much since Ron's outburst in that very same kitchen.

"Ronald." Mr. Possible said as he rose from his chair to face him. He wasn't sure if it was his imagination or not, but even though Ron looked almost exactly the same, there was something different about him. He stood up straighter now, looked stronger, older somehow, he could see it in his eyes. "Young man…"

"Yes sir?"

"It's good to see you again son." Mr. Possible said with a smile as he extended his hand, which Ron shook with surprising firmness. "How have you been?"

"Oh not to bad." Ron admitted, taking the chair that Mrs. Possible had pulled out for him. "Living in the city, working part time and going to school. Trying to find time for myself."

"It can be difficult." Mr. P admitted. "How has your father been?"

Mr. P ignored the glare he received from Mrs. P who turned from pouring drinks to deliver it.

"He's good, I guess…I don't know." Ron said looking down for a moment. "We haven't really talked much lately. Kind of went our separate ways."

"I'm sorry to hear that Ron." Mrs. P said as she set down a glass of Kool-Aid in front of Ron. "Red is still your favorite, right?"

"You know it." Ron smiled. "But it's alright, me and Dad. I understand his reasons, and hopefully someday we can speak without the cloud of what happened hanging over us."

Mr. And Mrs. P both nodded, before Ron changed the subject on them.

"What about the two of you? How have you two been?"

"Well," Mrs. Possible began. "It was rough after you left. Kimmie was a bit…difficult to live with, which made everything here hard. But lately it's been back to normal. Jim and Tim are still always up to no good."

"Yeah, sorry about all that, I didn't mean for…" Ron began.

"Ronald stop." Mr. Possible said, cutting him off. "We understand, your reasons for what you did. And we appreciate your concern for Kim's well being, as well as ours. It says a lot about you as a man to put our safety above your own happiness."

"Thank you. It mean's a lot to me." Ron said. "So…Mr. Dr. P. I hear you've got quite the contract at the space center these days."

Mr. Possible almost choked on his coffee. "How could you know about that? There's only a handful of people at our center that even know about it."

"Well, I've got inside information." Ron said with a smile. He had learned from J'onn that the Middleton Space Center had been chosen by Wayne Enterprises to head the delivery of materials that would be used to construct the Justice Leagues new watchtower.

"Well let us know if that source ever gives you investment tips." Mr. P said with a wink. "The…project has been going well. It's just about done. But I'm not the only one here with big news at work."

"James…"

"Honey don't be modest, tell Ronald about your promotion."

"Promotion?" Ron asked with a smile. "Yeah, tell Ronald."

"Well a couple weeks ago I got promoted to Chief Surgeon at Middleton General." Mrs. P said with a smile and a bit of a blush.

"Wow, Mrs. P that's great." Ron said

"Yeah, it has its advantageous." Mrs. Possible admitted.

"I'll bet." Ron said as he finished his Kool-Aid and glanced at his watch. "Aw, crap. I've got to get going. Kim's going to be ticked."

"Well if she is, we'll set her straight when she gets home." Said Mrs. P. "There's always time in the day for family."

Ron smiled as he stood up. "Thank you guys. For everything."

"Don't mention it, Ronald." Mr. P stated as he rose with Ron and clapped him on the shoulder. "But don't be such a stranger."

"I know, I've been so busy lately, but I'll be by more often." Ron smiled as the trio reached the door, and exchanged farewells.

"Like you said, there's always time for family."

-GL-

Kim tapped her foot anxiously on the cold ceramic tile floor of the Middleton Bueno Nacho. It wasn't like she didn't expect Ron to be late. He had never been one much for punctuality, and despite the fact that he could fly at near supersonic speeds with his ring, that fact hadn't changed.

No, she expected him to be late, but that didn't change the fact she wanted him here on time. She was so excited to tell her the news about joining the Titans. And also, to a lesser extent she was excited to hear the news Ron had as well.

Kim had tried to tell him that day, but she hadn't been able to get a hold of him. When she finally did, they both argued for a moment over who would speak, both bursting with excitement usually reserved for a childhood Christmas. Finally Ron took control, and said that he was going to be in Middleton within the next couple of days, and they would meet then.

Impatiently she grabbed her Bueno Soda and slurped hard on the straw, groaning when nothing came through. Reluctantly taking her eyes away from the door she got up and made her way over to the fountain for a refill.

"A watched door never opens anyway." Ron whispered in her ear, causing her to drop the half full cup into the overflow tray.

"How in the world?" Kim gasped, startled. "How did you sneak up on me like that?"

Ron smiled and pointed downwards towards at the ground. Kim followed his gesture to the ground, where Ron's feet floated a couple of inches off the ground.

"I'm so happy to see you, my feet don't even touch the ground." He smirked.

"Oh please." Kim rolled her eyes as she leaned into hug Ron, and pull him back to Earth. "It is good to see you though."

"You too KP." Ron said as he returned the hug. "You eat yet?"

"Just the cola, I was waiting on you."

"Well all right, lets chow. On me."

Several Naco's and burrito's later, Ron leaned back in his booth and rubbed his belly.

"That sure hit the spot." He said with a small burp.

"Brings back memories to doesn't it?" Kim asked

"Yeah it does." Ron sighed. "Seems like only yesterday you, me and Rufus sat in this booth shoving down tacos in between saving the world and high school."

"When our biggest concern were the cheerleading regionals…"Kim said

"And making it through the school day without getting detention." Ron added.

They sat in silence for a moment before Kim picked up her soda cup and hoisted it into the air in between them.

"A toast…to the good old days." She said with a slight smile.

"And to absent friends." Ron added, touching his cup to hers.

"So," Ron began as he set his cup down on the table. "What's your big news?"

Kim's face lit up as a smile spread across it.

"Oh my gosh. You'll never believe it."

"Try me."

"Ok, so I had to go to this lecture at school after I got back from New York. And guess who the speaker was?"

"Harrison Ford?"

"No, not Harrison Ford." Kim said sticking her tongue out. "It was Donna. And she gave this really awesome speech. But that's not the best part. After that I was sitting around at the student café, when she came in and sat down with me."

"So your big news is that you had lunch with a superhero that you saved the world with a few days earlier?" Ron asked with a bemused smile. "Hero worship jokes aside, I don't see this as important news."

"Would you just let me finish…ass"? Kim said with a glare. "Anyways, after some idle conversation, she asked me to join the Titans. And I accepted her offer."

"No kidding? Hey congratulations KP." Ron said with a smile, reaching over the table to squeeze her hand. "Are they going to give you one of those fancy jet deals to get back and forth from here to the tower without calling favors in all the time?"

"Well that's actually the best part, I hope." Kim said, squeezing Ron's hand back. "They are giving me my own room in the tower, and they set up my transfer to a community college outside the city. I'll be living just a few minutes away from you Ron."

Ron's eyes went wide at the last part of her statement. He opened his mouth to speak but was cut off by Kim.

"Now before you give me your 'dangerous to be around speech' let me remind you I'll be living in a tower full of superheroes." She said defiantly. "And if you are letting Bonnie and Monique hang around, your damn sure going to let me hang around."

"Well, you got me there KP." Ron said with a shrug. "I…wow, that's awesome Kim."

"You don't seem to enthused about it."

"I am." Ron assured her. "You were by my side for almost my entire life KP. These last few months without you…it's been like living without a part of myself. When everything happened with my mom, I just…"

"Ron." Kim said reaching across the table to put a finger to his lips, shushing him. "You don't have to say anything. I know now why you did what you did. I still don't agree with it, but I understand it more now. But it's in the past. We're friends again, and we're going to be close again."

"Thanks, KP." Ron smiled. "And I couldn't be happier about it."

"Me either." Kim said as she leaned back into her seat, feeling relief that Ron took her news well. "So what's your big news?

"Well it doesn't seem so big anymore compared to yours."

"Lets hear it anyways."

"Well much like yourself, I got made an offer I couldn't refuse." Ron grinned. "Now don't tell anybody yet, because we aren't going public until our new base on the moon is done."

"Base on the moon?" Kim said wide-eyed. "I'm guessing you didn't join up with the Pixie Scouts again?"

"No, just slightly larger." Ron laughed, and then leaned in to whisper to her. "The Justice League."

"The Jus!" Kim exclaimed loudly as Ron shot her a glare, then softly, "The Justice League?"

"Yep." Ron said proudly as he puffed out his chest. "Former loser stands aside Bats, Supes, Flasher, G.A, J'onn and WW. A true rags to riches story."

"Ron you were never a loser, but that's amazing!"

"I know, I couldn't…wait hold on a second." Ron said as he closed his eyes for a couple moments.

Kim looked at him in confusion as he sat for almost a minute with his eyes closed, nodding to himself. When he finally opened them his expression was serious.

"I'm sorry, but I have to go." He said apologetically. "J'onn just contacted me telepathically, and there's a tsunami threatening Japan that I need to go help with."

"Japan?"

"Yeah, I get to work on a larger scale now."

"Well, be careful." Kim said, rising with Ron to give him a hug.

"Always." Ron said with a smile. "Call me when you're moving in, I'll help with your stuff."

"I will." Kim said with a wave, as Ron turned and jogged out of Bueno Nacho. Kim cleared off their table and made her way out of the restaurant, where she could see a green streak rapidly disappearing high above in the sky.

-GL-

A/N

Sorry about the delay, and for the lack of action in this chapter. Hopefully the next few chapters will have more then enough of it.


	14. Love and Asteroids

Chapter 14

The large cavernous ceiling and metal floor combined to make an echo of every step as Shego made her way through the main room of Dr. Drakken's latest secret lair. Just once, she thought to herself, could we get one with carpet?

But no, this was another one of Drakken's basic hideouts: overly large common room, with large computer on one wall, doomsday device in the center of the room, and a bunch of metal crates on the other side of the room. Shego was just making her way from the living section. Drakken's latest plot was about to commence and Shego wanted to be unhand for it's inevitable undoing.

"So, how's it going Doc?" Shego asked as she approached the scientist, who was seated at the main computer console.

"Oh, Shego. It's going well. Just a few more configurations and coordinates and I'll be ready to strike at the city of my choice with my latest doomsday weapon."

"And this one works how exactly?" Shego asked with a roll of her eyes.

"Honestly Shego, we've been over this already." Drakken huffed. "If you weren't always so busy with the snide comments you would know. Now you will just have to wait until Kim Possible shows up. I'll tell it to her in my rant…before you kill her."

"Right." Shego smiled. "She had better show up."

"Why wouldn't she?" Drakken asked, confused. "She always shows up, and this time I've got you, and the extra muscle I hired from Hench to stop her."

"I dunno. I mean, we haven't heard from her in almost 6 months." Shego shrugged. "We were able to steal all this stuff, get this all set up, and still not a peep from her and Stoppable."

"Bah." Drakken dismissed Shego's concerns with a wave of his gloved hand. "Maybe her and the buffoon finally got married or something, who cares. And besides, if she doesn't show, that's just as well."

"Oh, I think she'll show."

"See, now that's the positive attitude we need Shego."

"That wasn't me Doc." Shego said narrowing her eyes and looking around.

"Sorry, that would be me." Kim Possible said, as she appeared out of the shadows in the rafters above Drakken and Shego. With a smile and a flip, she was on the ground in front of them. "My ears were burning, so I figured I'd drop in."

"Oy! Drop in? Aren't the lame jokes usually Stoppable's department?" Shego asked as she dropped into a fighting stance.

"Yeah, shouldn't he be crashing down on us with his pants around his head or something?" Drakken mused as he inched away from Shego.

"We don't exactly work together anymore." Kim admitted, matching Shego's fighting stance.

"Aw, so you're all alone now?" Shego said sticking her lip out in a pout.

"Well, I wouldn't exactly say that", Kim said with a smirk, back flipping away from Shego.

Shego looked confused for a moment, before the ceiling exploded, raining debris down on her. Once the hail of debris stopped she looked upwards to see another red head floating down towards her. This red head was wearing considerably less clothing then Kim though, and had orange skin.

"Oh crap." Shego muttered, igniting her hands in green flame.

"I can do you one better." Starfire said with a smile. She raised a hand at Shego, and sent a bright green energy blast that caught Shego in her stomach and sent her flying across the room.

"The Titans? You're cheating Possible!" Drakken accused as he backed away from the scene, towards his computer controls. "Now I'm not even going to tell you my plan, I'm just going to launch it!"

Drakken stopped dead in his back peddling tracks however as he hit something solid. He turned around slowly to find himself staring into the chest of a half man half robot.

"Nice computer set up you got here Doc." Cyborg said. "Pretty basic though, didn't take more then a minute to realize that your little weapon won't fire without this."

Drakken groaned as Cyborg held up a circuit board.

"Yes, but you didn't dismantle this!" Drakken grinned as he pulled out a walkie talkie. "Men, get in here and attack!"

Drakken turned towards a door at the far end of the room and looked at it with great anticipation. He could feel Cyborg staring at the door over his shoulder.

"Impressive."

"Wait for it…" Drakken sighed.

A moment later the doors slid open with a whoosh.

"A ha!" Drakken crowed. "Now get ready to pay the price."

The doorway remained empty for a long moment, before two red clad henchman staggered through. The first one took two steps out then collapsed, unconscious. The second made it only one step out of the door, before he collapsed, a red arrow shaft sticking out of his left shoulder.

The defeated henchmen were followed by Arsenal, who was doubled over laughing, and by Nightwing, who was dusting his hands off.

"Woah…aheh…I tell ya dude, I think you got ripped off with the hired help here." Arsenal managed to say before laughing uncontrollably again.

"There…there were fifty men in that room!" Drakken gaped.

"Yeah. Were." Nightwing said coldly, then with a grin. "And ol' Arsenal here will be more then happy to tell you who took more out."

"Kiss my ass." Arsenal muttered.

"Still owe me twenty bucks." Nightwing grinned.

"Shego! Do something!" Drakken cried

"Sure right." Shego groaned as she got up off the ground. "How about this?"

She charged hard at Kim, who dropped back into a defensive stance. Shego leapt into a flying kick, and hurtled herself at Kim. Kim neatly sidestepped the attack, and grabbed Shego by the ankle. Using her own momentum, she spun Shego around twice, and then launched her right back into the computer console she had come from. She slouched to the ground with a groan.

"Well then, I...uh… I guess I'll be going now." Drakken stammered as he started to walk away, only to have his progress halted by a large metal hand on his shoulder. "Ah, hell."

-GL-

"Ya know, it's been like, what, six months since we got this Justice League thing back together right?" Green Lantern thought into the JLA telepathic link. "And I can only count two, maybe three good superhero/super villain fights. The rest has just been this boring stuff, or stopping a rain storm or something."

"This is hardly small time stuff Green Lantern." Superman thought as he floated up next to GL in the darkness of space. "If these asteroids hit Earth, it could have a very negative effect on the global climate."

"Yeah I know." Lantern sighed as the asteroid in question came to rest in his giant construct catchers mitt. "It's just sometimes you need some good old fist to face action. Instead of construct to rock, or heat vision to rock."

Superman smiled, as Lantern turned his catchers mitt into a golf tee. Superman and the Martian Manhunter flanked the giant rock, and both trained their heat vision on it. Moments later the asteroid shattered into several smaller pieces, which would burn up in the earth's atmosphere.

"Well hey GL, maybe you'll just get have to get yourself a different kind of action." The Flash thought over the link. "Like…tonight maybe."

"Stuff it Wally." Lantern thought harshly. "I recall your job being asteroid location, not Green Lantern ribbing."

"Heh. Next one's at three o'clock."

Lantern shook his head, and directed his attention to the next asteroid.

"What is the Flash talking about?" J'onn inquired.

"Tonight is my first actual date with Stargirl." Lantern confessed. "Which, by the way Flash, how do you even know about that?"

"Jay Garrick. We speedsters keep in touch regularly."

"Of course you do."

"You two are just now setting up a date?" Superman asked, as he moved into position to dispose of the next asteroid. "I thought you had gone on a few already."

"We'll we've been talking on the phone, and online a lot. But every time we try to set something up, some sort of emergency comes up." Lantern thought, covering himself with a construct umbrella to protect him from some stray debris.

"Sorry." J'onn thought.

"It's cool. Is that all?"

"Yeah, looks like we're good for now." Flash thought. "And once again the world is a better place."

"We'll you aren't thinking about…I mean…on just the first date…" Superman tried to get out, as the trio made their way back to the moon based Watchtower.

"C'mon Superman what kind of guy do you think I am?" Lantern asked, mock offended.

"A young, hormone driven one." J'onn responded.

"Hey now!" Lantern thought with a smile. "I am not hormone driven!"

"Then I guess nobility must have been the reason that you volunteered to evacuate the students at that all girls college that was hit by that earthquake last month in California." Superman thought with a smile.

"Nobility. Absolutely."

Superman laughed as the three entered the airlock of the watchtower. The door shut behind them without a sound, and the room was quickly filled with the hiss of atmosphere being pumped in. Once the light on the door went from red to green, Lantern dropped his protective aura that allowed him to breathe in the vacuum of space.

A moment later the inside door opened with a whoosh, and they were back inside the relative comfort of the watchtower.

"I'm just saying, you should take things slow." Superman said, as J'onn broke the telepathic link, which was no longer necessary. "You two seem to get along real well. And you know…sex might ruin that."

"I can see why Ollie calls you the Boy Scout all the time." Lantern said with a grin. "But I appreciate your concern. On the other hand, I already do have plenty of female friends that I'm not having sex with…"

"Lantern…"

"I kid, I kid." Lantern laughed as he slapped Superman on the back, then shook his hand in pain. "Ow."

-GL-

"We'll you're unusually quiet for this portion of the ride."

Drakken looked up at Shego, who was seated across from him in the armored prisoner transport. On either side of each handcuffed villain was an armed guard. Shego's handcuffs were specially designed to keep her green flames inside. Their eyes locked for a moment and then Drakken merely grunted, and went back to studying the floor.

"I mean, usually at this point your ranting about your next plan." Shego continued, studying Drakken's face for a response. "No? Well how about a little 'I'll get Kim Possible yet'?"

At the mention of Kim's name Drakken narrowed his eyes.

"I will get Kim Possible, Shego." He growled. "But she has changed the rules to the game. Joining with the Titans…she's elevated herself."

"Well maybe that will just allow us to fly under her radar more and we could…"

"No Shego. She elevates her game. I elevate mine. It could be a good thing though, perhaps a change of pace will be good."

"Right…well what are you going to change?"

Drakken smiled, a mixture of sadness and evil. As he did the armored truck lurched to a stop. The guards stood quickly, one focusing his weapon on Shego and Drakken, the other aiming it towards the rear door, the only way in.

All was quiet for a moment before the roof of the vehicle was ripped off. Before either guard could react, they were both downed by a laser blast. A rope ladder descended into the back of the truck and one of Drakken's red clad henchmen climbed down.

"About those changes Shego." Drakken began as the henchman undid his cuffs. "I think I'll start with the help."

With that, he turned and grabbed the henchman's laser pistol from his belt and blasted him in the chest. With a yelp the man crumpled to the ground.

Drakken then aimed the laser at the wide-eyed Shego as he started to climb the rope ladder back to the hovercraft.

"I'm sorry Shego, but I think we both need a change." He said sadly. "It's been a pleasure…and I'll make sure your severance pay is deposited into your account."

Once he reached the hovercraft, he cut the ladder, watching as it dropped to the ground next to Shego. He moved the craft in closer, and leveled the gun at Shego. With a squeeze of the trigger, Shego's handcuffs fell to the ground broken. And with a curt wave, Drakken flew off into the night.

"Hm" Shego said to herself, still dumbfounded by what had just happened. In the distance she could hear police sirens and decided it best to make herself scarce. With a quick flip out of the truck, she made her way into the dark night, unemployed and alone.

-GL-

Green Lantern gulped as he landed on the front lawn of the JSA mansion. This was it, the big first date, he thought to himself. He always managed to get nervous on the first date, no matter how well he knew the girl. And that thought made him laugh, because he could count the number of first dates he had on one hand.

"Not to mention the number of second dates." He muttered wryly as he made his way up the walk.

He rang the doorbell and waited for a couple moments, thinking about the absurdity of a superhero team living in a mansion with a doorbell.

'I wonder if villains just come strolling up and knock.'

Lantern burst into a smile at the sight of Darkseid ringing the doorbell, asking if the JSA can come out to play. The image relaxed him a little bit as the door swung open.

"Green Lantern! How's it going?"

"Alex, hey man." Lantern replied with a smile, extending his hand to the current curator of the JSA museum. "Got you working the door now huh?

"A man's gotta earn his keep." Alex said with a chuckle as he led Lantern inside. "Besides, I think the Society has better things to do then deal with Jehovah's witnesses and vacuum salesmen."

"Good point." Lantern noted, as Alex led him down a hallway, passing many rooms, before they came to what looked like a waiting room. There were several chairs and sofas on the floor, and the walls were adorned with various pieces of memorabilia and team photos from over the years.

"Stars will be down in a minute or two. Though I think she was expecting something a little more formal out of you." Alex commented, indicating Lantern's uniform.

"Really?

"An' formals how yer gonna keep it, if you want to make it to date two kid."

Lantern tried to respond, but he found himself in an iron grip headlock, courtesy of Wildcat, a former boxer, and one of the superhero circles most respected fighters.

Wildcat ruffled Lanterns hair a bit, before he let him go gasping for air.

"I coulda broke that you know." Lantern said, once he regained his breath. "Batman showed me how."

Wildcat laughed loudly.

"I taught Bat's that move when you were still in diapers kid. And besides, knowin' how to break it, and actually breakin' it are two different things."

"Sounds like a challenge old timer." Lantern smirked.

"I'd take ya right here kid, but I don't wanna mess ya up for Stars. For some reason she's actually looking forward to this date with you."

"Yes I am Wildcat, and I'm sure GL appreciates your kindness as much as I do." Star Girls voice came from behind Lantern.

"Nah, I don't need any charity from the…likes…of…him." Lanterns voice trailed off as he turned around to face his date for the evening.

Stargirl stood in the doorway, leaning on the doorframe. She was dressed in a pair of low-slung jeans, which were delightfully tight, all the way down to her fashionable work boots. Her torso was adorned with a tight blue long sleeved shirt that stopped a few inches above her jeans, revealing a little bit of belly. The shirt was as tight as the jeans, and had a script letter 'B' in the middle of the chest. Her long blonde hair draped over her shoulders, but the most striking feature of her wardrobe was what wasn't there: her mask.

"Wow." Lantern finally managed to get out. "You look even better out of your costume."

Behind him he heard Wildcat growl, which drew a smile and a giggle from Stargirl.

"That is to say, out of your mask!" Lantern hurriedly corrected his statement. "I didn't mean it like that I just…uh…you're pretty."

"Thank you." Stars said with a blushing smile.

"For your health, lets hope the mask is the only thing you see her with out." Wildcat whispered to Lantern as he walked by, stopping to give Stargirl a hug. "Lookin' good kid, be careful, and don't be to late, I know yer step dad don't want you breakin' curfew."

Stars agreed, and turned to Lantern, who was muttering something about Superman under his breath, and rolled her eyes.

Lantern grinned and walked towards her, offering his arm, which she readily took.

"So…" Stars started as they made their way down the hallway towards the door. "We're going to look pretty goofy if you plan on wearing that out to dinner."

"Don't worry about that babe." Lantern smiled. "I brought a change of clothes in my magic suitcase."

As Stars looked at him confused, Lanterns uniform vanished in a flash of green light. In its place was a pair of well-worn khaki cargo pants, with black tennis shoes, and a button up black collared shirt, unbuttoned at the top to reveal a dark green undershirt. The shirt was untucked, and the sleeves were rolled up to the elbow.

Lantern let go of her arm and stepped back to face her. His mask was the only part of the uniform that remained. He had given this part quite a lot of thought, because he knew it was inevitable. After much debating, he decided that someone who could keep her own identity a secret could also keep his. Besides that, she had no problem taking off her mask, and Lantern remembered hearing somewhere that trust was key in a relationship.

The mask finally dissolved, and it brought a smile to Stars face.

"Well, the mask didn't leave much to the imagination anyway." She said. "But I didn't expect you to have such beautiful eyes."

"Flattery will get you everywhere my dear." Ron said with a blush.

"Oh, and by the way…" He began as he extended his hand. "My name's Ron."

"Mine's Courtney." She replied as she shook Ron's hand.

"Pleased to meet you pretty lady." Ron said as he wrapped his arm over her shoulder.

"The pleasure's mine." Courtney replied, sliding her arm around his waist, as they made their way out of the Mansion.

-GL-

"No way." Courtney giggled, her face beet red. "Nine pairs in one week?"

"Yeah, and only five missions." Ron replied, shaking his head sadly. "Kim always wondered why I would get bummed out when she refused payment or reward money from some of our jobs. The pants budget was getting out of control."

Courtney laughed again; almost spitting up the water she had been trying to drink. The couple had found an Italian restaurant downtown that had a surprisingly short wait. They were passing the time between salad and entrée by getting to know more about each other.

"So you're not new to the hero things at all then are you?" Courtney asked, once her giggling stopped.

"Well, yes and no." Ron mused. "When it was me and Kim, I was pretty much just along for the ride. I had my moments, and Kim would never admit this, but I was pretty useless. Now though, I feel like I pull my own weight. Even when I'm with the League, I'm starting to feel like I'm contributing more and more."

"You couldn't have been that bad before."

"Four words come to mind." Ron replied, counting them off on his fingers. "Ron, be a distraction."

Courtney smiled again, and shook her head.

"I know how you feel though." She said. "When I'm out with the JSA I just feel like I'm the junior member or something sometimes. I mean, half the time I think Sentinel could take down our enemies on his own."

"Now you know that's not true." Ron said. "I've seen you in action, you and that rod kick some serious tail. And those shooting stars are…"

Ron stopped as the waiter returned and placed an order of chicken Parmesan in front of him, and a plate of spaghetti and meatballs in front of Courtney.

"Can I get you anything else?" the waiter asked.

"I'll have another Coke." Ron said glancing at his nearly empty beverage, then at Courtney's "And another water for her please."

"Right away," the waiter said with a smile, taking the two glasses and heading towards the kitchen.

"Thanks." Courtney said, sprinkling some cheese on her pasta. "So…you and Kim never, like dated or anything? If you don't mind me asking."

"Its okay." Ron smiled. "I get asked that all the time. But no, we never did. I thought about it, at one point. But she always had her eye on someone more popular, better looking. And I didn't really want to muck up our friendship; she was just about my only friend."

"Better looking then you? I find that hard to believe."

"Now what did I tell you earlier about flattery?"

"Oh, I remember." Courtney smiled "What about now though? You guys aren't working together, and she moved up here to be closer to you."

Ron shrugged. "We're friends. I don't know if she wants more then that. I hope she doesn't though, for her sake. I've become quite smitten with this pretty blonde girl I know."

This time it was Courtney's turn to blush, as she twirled spaghetti around on her fork.

"Flatterer."

-GL-

A few hours later, after the completion of dinner and a brief carriage ride through central park, Ron and Courtney stood on the doorsteps of the JSA mansion.

"Well, I for one had a wonderful time tonight." Ron said with a broad smile.

"That makes two of us." Courtney replied, matching Ron's smile. "We'll have to do it again sometime…soon."

"How's Friday sound?" Ron replied quickly. "There's a great Chinese place around the corner from my apartment. Take out, movie rental?"

"I mean, if that's alright with you." He added. "And you know, villains and disasters permitting."

"On one condition, green jeans." Courtney smirked, as she stepped closer to Ron, grabbing the front of his shirt. "Your couch had better be small enough for some snuggling. And I get to pick the movie."

"Well, uh, kiss me if I'm wrong, but isn't that two conditions?" Ron said, leaning down towards Courtney's face.

"Ya got me." She replied, reaching up to meet his lips with hers, as they locked in a passionate kiss.

They held the kiss for what seemed like forever, but still felt like it ended to soon when split.

"Wow." Ron said, a grin spreading across his face.

"Wow is right." Courtney said.

"Well, I'll uh, give you a call about Friday." Ron said, as he turned and opened the door for Courtney.

"Can't wait." She said, as she gave him a quick peck on the lips before heading inside. "Goodnight."

"Night." Ron said as he closed the door shut.

He took a few steps down from the stoop, and with a quick look around, he changed into Green Lantern in a flash of light. Moments later he was airborne, heading back towards his apartment.

"What a great night! And a kiss!" Lantern exclaimed to himself as he soared over the city. "I cannot wait until Friday. I need to go home and start cleaning that sty of an apartment up though."

As if on cue, Lantern was jolted from his thoughts be a loud explosion. Stopping in mid air he turned to his left to see fire pouring out of the top floor of a high-rise apartment building.

"Ah, nuts." Lantern groaned as he zoomed towards the fire. "This better not be anything to time consuming…"

To be continued…

What was the cause of the explosion? Will Ron get his apartment clean? What is Shego going to do now? What else is Kim doing? Will the next chapter take as long to come out as this one did? Find out in the next installment of Green Lantern!


	15. Enter Fatality

Chapter 15

Fifteen minutes ago…

Beep…beep…beep

"Yeah, I hear ya Damnit." John Stewart muttered to himself as he closed the door to the refrigerator. "Stupid microwave."

"Need any help in there John?"

"No honey I've got it." John replied to his wife Merayn, who was patiently waiting her husband's return to the living room with a bowl of microwave popcorn.

Spinning away from the refrigerator, John wheeled across the kitchen, a glass of water in the cup holder he had attached to his wheel chair. Once he reached the counter, the microwave was a bit of a stretch for him, but he managed to get the bag of popcorn out, and into a bowl.

It was the simple things like the difficulty of making popcorn that made John wish he could still walk. The thought was quickly banished though. He didn't get where he was today by dwelling on the past or being weak willed.

Years ago, John Stewart had been a brash young man. Headstrong, his friends would describe him. It was one of the traits that led him to be selected by the Guardians of the Universe to be the backup Green Lantern of sector 2814.

That all ended when Hal Jordan, the man he had served with, trained under, and learned to call friend, betrayed everything the Lantern Corp. stood for. At the time of Hal's betrayal, John was inactive. He stayed that way until joining up with the Darkstars, another intergalactic police force. He led the Darkstars for a while, filling the void in the universe left by the destruction of the Corps. He led them until a battle on the planet Rann left him paralyzed.

Now he spent his time as an architectural engineer, sharing an apartment with his lover Merayn, who had also been a member of the Darkstars.

"Okay honey, it's popcorn time." John smiled as he rolled into the living room. "Better get started on that movie, or I'll be asleep before it ends."

"Like you wont be anyway." Merayn smiled as she stood up and helped John from his chair to the couch. "It's a wonder…"

THUMP

"What?"

"Did you hear that John?"

"No I didn't hear…"

John Stewart's words were cut off as the outside wall of their apartment exploded. The blast sent both of them tumbling to the ground as the apartment filled with flame and smoke.

"Merayn? Merayn!" John called as he felt around through the smoke for his wife.

"Your dog of a lover is the least of your concerns at the moment Stewart." A female voice spoke, cutting through the smoke and sending chills down John's spine. "You should save your cries for her when I am tearing her limb from limb in front of you."

"No…" John whispered as the voice took a form through the smoke in front of him.

"Oh yes."

John was suddenly yanked up by his shirt collar and dangled several feet in the air. He was close enough now to his attacker he could see what he already knew. He was staring face to face with the last living member of a dead planet. A planet John Stewart was responsible for destroying.

"Fatality." John gasped, staring in the face of his greatest mistake.

"You remember." Fatality growled. "And that will be the last time you are able to speak my name."

-GL-

Now…

Green Lantern approached the flaming apartment building. He gave the building a quick scan; whatever caused the explosion had been isolated to this apartment. A construct-breathing mask appeared over his face as he flew into the mess. He could hear the building's fire alarm in the hallway, and the sprinklers in the apartment were already starting to put down the fires. That was good; it allowed GL to focus on survivors.

"Hello! Is anyone in here?" Lantern called as he floated through the apartment. "If you can hear me call…"

Lanterns voice trailed off as he came across something he wasn't really expecting to see. In the middle of theremains of the living room, a tall muscular black lady stood, holding a bruised and beaten black man by his throat. Behind them Lantern could see another female, this one blue skinned, pinned under a scorched sofa.

Whatever was happening stopped as the woman noticed Green Lantern's entrance. She was wearing metallic green boots, a similar chest plate, with green gauntlets and bands around her upper arms. The rest of her suit was black, with an M like symbol on her chest. Her ears were what caught GL's eyes however. They were pointed, but more noticeable were her earrings that bore Green Lanterns own symbol.

The two surveyed each other, Fatality's eyes wide with a mixture of anger and surprise.

"Impossible." She spat. "You're all supposed to be dead."

"You'd be surprised how often I get that." Lantern shrugged. "So I don't think we've been properly introduced, I'm Green Lantern."

"My name is Fatality. And I'm going to kill you."

"Well that's nice." Green Lantern muttered.

"Your death has been delayed Stewart." Fatality snarled, turning back to the beaten man she held. "But it will come soon enough."

She dropped John to the ground and drew a large sword from a sheath on her back. With a growl she charged headfirst at GL.

Lantern took a step back and formed a construct sword, which he used to block Fatality's attack. Their swords locked, Fatality kicked out, knocking Lantern off balance. Another kick, this time to his face, sent him flying across the room.

"Pathetic." Fatality said as she walked over to Lantern. " I've traveled the universe slaying arrogant Lanterns such as yourself. And now, a child is delaying my final triumph over John Stewart. The Guardians final champion is but another stain on their tainted legacy."

She raised her sword over her head to strike down GL, but was knocked back across the room by a green energy blast. Lantern got to his feet and cracked his neck.

"Alright lady, I'm not sure who you are, or what you're trying to do here. But I'm not a stain on anybody's taint, and if you've killed Lanterns, then this is personal."

"Personal? You have no idea how personal this is!"

Fatality charged again swinging wildly with her sword. Lantern was barely able to dodge or block each blow. Finally she over swung, and Lantern caught Fatality in the midsection with the construct shield he had formed. As she doubled over, Lantern grabbed her by the hair and flung her towards the opening in the side of the apartment.

"You delay your inevitable death." Fatality said as she got to her feet and raised her sword again.

Lanterns reply was to simply point to the ground at Fatality's feet. She looked down to discover that she was standing in the launching part of a construct catapult. With a grin, Lantern pulled the release string, sending Fatality flying out of the hole in the wall.

"That should buy me a couple moments." Lantern muttered to himself as he turned to help the two people who Fatality had been attacking.

The man was trying to lift the couch off of the blue skinned lady, but was having some difficulty.

"Allow me." Lantern said, flipping the couch off of her. He reached down and gathered the woman in his arms and placed her on a construct stretcher.

"Is she…" John asked, his voice trailing off, unwilling to finish the question.

"She's alive." Lantern said, scanning her with his ring. "Couple broken bones, and some nasty cuts, but she should be fine. I'll get you guys down to the street, I think I hear sirens."

"You'll have to call S.T.A.R Labs. They are the only ones with charts of Merayn's physiology. In case you didn't notice, she's not from around here."

"Yeah the blue skin is a dead give away. Can you stand?"

"Not for some time now." John replied, pointing to his busted wheel chair.

"Oh. My apologies." Lantern said sheepishly, making a construct wheel chair. "Let's get you down to the street then."

A large green platform, big enough for the three of them, appeared underneath the trio and made its way towards the opening in the wall.

"Green Lantern to Watchtower." Lantern spoke into his communications device as they made their way out of the building and down to the street.

"_Go ahead."_ Batman's voice growled into his earpiece. Even from the moon his voice was scary.

"Um, I need you to send a S.T.A.R labs medical unit to my location. I've got an injured…alien, I guess here, the fellow I'm with says the regular ambulance won't be able to handle her physi, physical, olo…"

"_Physiology."_ Batman snapped. _"A unit is on its way, ETA five to ten minutes. Anything else?" _

"Yeah, what can you tell me about some chick named Fatality?"

"I can tell you anything you need to know about her." John spoke up from beside him, sadness in his voice.

"Cancel that. This guy says he can help."

"_John Stewart?"_ Batman asked

"Yeah, I think that's his name." Lantern said with a wrinkled eyebrow. "How did you know?"

"_Listen to whatever he tells you. And call if you need backup. Watchtower out."_

"Alright pal, me and you gotta talk. Anybody Batman tells me to listen to gets just that." Lantern said as the platform touched down, and medics came rushing over to them.

"There are some specialists on the way for her." Lantern told the EMT's. "Do whatever you can until they get here, then turn her over to them please."

"Yes sir Mr. Lantern, its an honor." One of the EMT's said as they transferred Merayn from the construct stretcher to a real one. "And him?"

"I'll be fine for a minute." John said waving off assistance. "I've had worse, and I need to talk to the Green Lantern here in private."

"Alright, we'll be right over there when you're done." The EMT said as they wheeled Merayn away.

Once the EMT's were out of earshot Lantern turned to face John who had his hand extended in front of him.

"First off, I'm John Stewart." John said as GL shook his hand. "It's nice to meet you finally, I've been following you in the paper. You're doing good so far, all things considered."

"Thanks. And not to be rude but…"

"I know, Fatality. Yrra Cynril is the last surviving member of the planet Xanshi. She blames the Green Lantern Corps. for the destruction of her home world. I wont go into the details, but the destruction could have been averted, or stopped by the Lantern on duty in that sector. Since then, she has made it her personal mission to slaughter any and all Green Lanterns."

John paused and took a deep breath, looking up at GL to make sure he was still with him. The intent stare told him he was.

"She's succeeded too. A lot of Lanterns met their fate by her blade. That was before what Hal did though…that kind of did a lot of her job for her."

"Hal?" Lantern interrupted "You knew Jordan?"

"He was my friend."

"I see. Some friend." Lantern said. "Is that why she's coming after you now? Because of your friendship with Jordan?"

"No. I was the Green Lantern that was on duty the day her planet was destroyed. She blames me for the loss of her home world, and I guess she's finally tracked me down."

"No kidding, you were a Lantern?" GL asked, surprised.

"Don't look so surprised, I wasn't always a cripple." John said with a sad smile. "I was selected to be Hal's back up, years ago."

"Green Lantern!"

GL turned to see one of the EMT's from earlier waving his arms at him.

"That S.T.A.R labs crew is here!"

"Go be with your wife." Lantern said turning back to John. "I'll take care of Fatality. And I'd like to get together after all this and talk."

"Agreed." John said, shaking Lanterns hand before wheeling himself towards the ambulance. "And good luck."

"Thanks." Lantern said before taking off in the direction Fatality had flown. "Ring, calculate landing area for our target."

_Two blocks, straight ahead_.

"Wow that catapult packed a punch." Lantern remarked.

"So do I."

Lantern glanced down at the sound of the voice, his eyes going wide as he saw Fatality hurtling towards him like a missile. He had no time to get out of the way, as she impacted with him, sending them both crashing to a rooftop below.

They hit hard, tumbling across the roof trading blows until they finally separated, both combatants springing to their feet.

With another yell, Fatality charged across the roof, sword drawn once again. Lantern met her in the middle, his construct sword clashing with hers.

"You don't have to do this Yrra." Lantern grunted as their swords clashed. "What happened wasn't John's fault."

"Lies!" Fatality cried, pushing Lantern away. "You know nothing of what happened. My family, my world destroyed because of Stewart and the Guardians arrogance. It came back on them with Jordan's betrayal, but my mission will not be complete until I squeeze the life from John Stewarts body."

"Well that's not gonna happen lady." Lantern said as he formed a pair of construct shackles around Fatality's feet, causing her to fall on her back.

Fatality rolled over and tried to stand, but was caught in the midsection by a swift kick that sent her sprawling. She lost her grip on her sword, and it went spinning across the rooftop in another direction.

Before Fatality could try and stand again, another pair of shackles was on her hands, and Green Lantern stood over her.

"It's over."

"Then kill me." Fatality spat. "Kill me, and end my misery.

"I'm not going to kill you Fatality."

"Coward. If you allow me to live I will kill you, I promise you that." Fatality said, tears forming in her eyes. "I will kill you, and I will kill Stewart, and I will kill his dog wife, and anyone else who has ever worn the ring of the damned Guardians!"

"You aren't killing…guck.." Lantern looked down at his midsection, pain rushing through his body. The handle of the knife was the only thing visible, as blood rushed out around it. "Where…"

Lantern staggered backwards clutching his midsection. The knife must've been in her hand…thrown it, during her speech, Lantern thought. In front of him Fatality stood, easily snapping the shackles that were weakened by Lanterns fading concentration.

"Foolish child." Fatality said, watching Lantern drop to his knees. "I was unprepared for a ring tonight, and I have still dealt you a fatal blow. I leave you to your final moments."

She turned away from him and began walking towards the edge of the roof.

'No…' Lantern thought as watched her leave through blurry vision. 'John…'

Lantern raised his ring hand and leveled an energy blast at Fatality. The blast struck her square in the back, her surprised yelp of pain filling the night air. She staggered forward, and then fell over the side of the building.

"No!" Lantern cried as he watched her go over the edge. He tried to stand, but his legs were like jelly, and he fell right back to the rooftop.

"Lantern to Watchtower." He gasped into his comm. link.

"_Watchtower."_

"Need one o' them S.T.A.R units to this location…" Lantern wheezed. "Meta…medical…maybe pickup. And…some help for…me."

"_Sending one now. What's your status Lantern?" _

"I…hurt…" Lantern muttered before his world went black.

"_Lantern? Lantern!"_

-GL-

"Wow."

"What?"

"This view is what! This is amazing, you can see like the whole damn city!"

Kim Possible smiled as Monique Jackson stood in front of the floor to ceiling widow that made up the outer wall of her room in Titans tower.

"Screw the view, look at this closet!" Bonnie Rockwaller added from inside Kim's walk-in closet. "This is bigger then my bedroom back home."

"My favorite part is the bed actually." Kim confessed, sitting down on the edge of it. "It's easily the most comfortable thing I've ever slept on."

"Well, I'll be the judge of that." Monique said, walking over and flopping down. "Oh my, this is cozy."

"Make room." Bonnie demanded, walking out of the closet. Monique obliged, rolling to one side, allowing her friend to test the bed out.

"Wow." Bonnie sighed. "You guys know what this bed needs though don't you?"

"What's that?" Kim asked, as Monique rolled her eyes.

"That Nightwing dude. Right here." Bonnie grinned slapping the bed on either side of her, and then she jumped up and straddled an invisible Nightwing. "And me, here like this!"

Monique burst out laughing, and Kim's eyes went wide before she too burst out laughing.

Once the laughter died down, Kim got herself off the bed and made her way towards the half kitchen portion of her apartment.

"You guys want some chips? Or a soda?"

"Only if they give me super powers so I can join up and get a room here." Monique called.

"Right." Kim laughed. "One super powered Diet Coke coming up. Bonnie?"

"Yeah, I'll have a water, and if you're bringing chips I'll have some."

A couple moments later Kim emerged with two Diet Cokes and a glass of water, as well as a bag of chips and salsa.

Bonnie and Monique had relocated to the sofa that was in the corner of the room, and Kim joined them, setting the snacks on the coffee table in front of them, and dropping herself down on the sofa in between them. With a small grunt, she reached underneath her and pulled the television remote from the cushion.

"So where was Ron tonight?" Bonnie asked, missing the quick glare Monique shot her behind Kim. "I would think he would be all over seeing a horror movie with the three hottest chicks in Manhattan."

"Well apparently Ron would rather spend time with one girl, not three." Kim said with a hint of jealousy in her voice, as she turned the television on, flipping to the late night news. "He had a date tonight."

"No kidding." Bonnie said, munching on chips. "With who?"

"Didn't say."

"His loss." Monique added, grabbing a handful of chips. "Hey look, the Green Lantern."

Kim and Bonnie turned to the TV, which was showing some amateur footage of Green Lantern lowering some people to the ground from a burning apartment building.

"…Authorities would not comment on how the fire started, though several neighbors claim they heard an explosion moments before the alarms went off. The fire department was thankful for the help of local hero Green Lantern, but weren't sure of his relationship, if any, to the fire victims."

The news then went to commercial as Kim turned the volume back down, hiding her smile behind her can of soda. Deep down, part of her hoped that fire interrupted Ron's date. She mentally scolded herself however for being so petty.

"So you hook up with him yet?" Bonnie asked, snapping Kim from her thoughts.

"What?"

"The Green Lantern." Monique grinned. "We know you two have teamed up before. And well…we're kinda curious just what all he can do with that ring of his."

"Monique!"

"Well?"

"No." Kim said, shaking her head. "I haven't, and I don't know what all he can do with that ring of his."

"Ya know K, you really aren't taking advantage of this super hero thing." Bonnie sighed. "I mean sure this apartment is really nice, and the scholarships and everything you got are great but…"

"But what?"

"But look at all the fine men you are surrounded by." Monique picked up where Bonnie left off. "Just in this tower alone you've got Nightwing, Cyborg, and that redheaded guy with the arrows."

"Arsenal."

"Yeah. And you're not doing anything with any of them." Bonnie said, looking towards the door, which was being knocked on.

"You guys are terrible." Kim said with a chuckle, standing up and making her way to the door. "Though now I kind of do want to get some good sex stories, just to keep from you guys."

"You wouldn't!" Monique and Bonnie chimed in unison, to which Kim just smiled as she pressed a button by the door, opening it up with a whoosh.

"Nightwing." Kim said with a nod to the masked man standing in the hallway wearing a grim expression. She tried her best to ignore Bonnie's squeal from behind her.

"Got a moment?"

"Sure." Kim said, stepping into the hallway, the soundproof door sliding shut behind her. "What's up boss?"

"Wally just called me from the Watchtower." Nightwing began. "Green Lantern got into a tussle with someone called Fatality tonight."

"Really? I saw he helped some people with a fire on the news, but what's that got to do with me?" Kim said trying to mask her concern.

Nightwing half smiled.

"I'm glad to see you've been listening to me during our training sessions, but you can drop the act with me. Wally and GL have been hanging out a lot, and Wally knows GL is Ron. And I figured it out a while ago…when he came to me for help once."

"Oh, um…ok?" Kim said, growing worried.

"I'll spare you the details for now, because I'm sure you're going to want to get going." Nightwing continued. "After that fire, GL got into it with the person responsible. And he got injured."

"Bad?" Kim asked, the color draining from her face.

"I don't know." Nightwing admitted, handing Kim a piece of paper. "But I don't think Wally would have called if it were nothing. That's the address of the S.T.A.R labs hospital he's at. Ask for Dr. Sarah Charles. Tell them I sent you."

"Thanks." Kim said, turning towards the hangar, and a short-range jet that would get her into the city quick. Then she stopped, motioning towards her room. "Would you?"

"Of course." Nightwing nodded, knowing Bonnie and Monique would need to be shown out, and probably taken home. "Get going."

Kim nodded and took off running, almost as fast as her heart was pounding.

-GL-

With a groan, Ron groggily opened his eyes. With another groan, he regretted the action. The bright light shining directly into his eyes added to the dull throbbing in his head. He quickly closed his eyes again, and threw his left forearm over his face in an attempt to block out the light.

Judging by the bright light, the beeping of machinery, and the tube in his left arm, Ron knew the only place he could be was a hospital. Not to mention the unmistakable smell, that he had never really grown used to, despite spending a lot of time as a child in the hospital visiting Kim's mother.

Now that he knew the where, Ron began to rack his brain for the why. He thought back through the night, a process made difficult by whatever medication the doctors had put him on.

"Fatality" he finally remembered aloud, moving his hand down to his midsection, wincing when he found it wrapped in gauze. As he felt the still tender wound he was hit with a terrible realization; he couldn't move his legs.

"No…" he muttered trying to move the offending appendages. "I can't move my legs! I can't…oh…"

His panic subsided as he finally opened his eyes and looked down at his legs, seeing the blue top and blonde hair that were keeping his legs immobile.

"Hey. Wake up." Ron called to the slowly stirring form.

A moment later Stargirl was awake, and had Ron locked in a tight embrace.

"Ow, ow ow."

"Ohmigosh! I'm sorry!" Stargirl gasped as she pulled away. "I was so worried, I didn't think you were gonna wake up, you lost so much blood and they said the cut was so deep and…"

"Hey…hey, slow down Court." Ron smiled, reaching out and grabbing her hand, giving it a firm a squeeze as he could muster. "I'm alright. How long have you been here?"

"I dunno, a few hours." Stargirl shrugged, gripping Ron's hand with both of hers. "They called Dr. Midnight at the JSA mansion to come help when they brought you in, and I came over with him."

"Well it looks like he did a good job of putting me back together."

"Yeah, he's the best."

"He couldn't have done it without your help though." A voice came from the doorway.

Ron and Stargirl turned to the voice, which belonged to a younger attractive doctor. She wore a standard white lab coat and was carrying a clipboard and a smile.

"I'm Dr. Sarah Charles." She said, walking over and checking some numbers on the machines. "Most people would have died from a gut wound like that. But your willpower and the protection your ring offers kept you together long enough for Doc Midnight to fix you up."

"Well we Green Lanterns are a certain kind of special." Ron smiled. "They don't give these rings out to just any guy on the street. Well…maybe they do, but that's beside the point."

"I see that." Dr. Charles said. "But regardless, you should concentrate on getting rest. I've worked with you super types long enough to know that you're going to check yourself out before you're ready, so I want you to get all the rest you can before you do."

"Sounds fair to me, I feel like I haven't slept in weeks." Ron admitted.

"Of course that means visiting hours are over."

"Oh." Stargirl said, her shoulders slumping. "I can't stay in this chair or something?"

"I'm sorry." Dr. Charles replied. "I bent the rules enough letting you stay while he recovered from surgery. Dr. Midnight's good word got you that, but Green Lantern really does need his rest."

"But…"

"It's ok Stars." Ron assured her, squeezing her hand. "I'll be fine, besides I snore anyway. When do visiting hours start up again?"

"Ten in the morning." Dr. Charles replied as she made her way to the door. "So I'm sure I'll see you then Stargirl. Goodnight Lantern."

"Night, and thanks Doc."

"All part of the job." She said with a smile as she stepped out into the hallway. "I'm sorry, visiting hours are over…"

"So anyway," Ron began, turning to Stargirl and missing the last part of what Dr. Charles had said. "See you in the morning?"

"Bright and early." Stargirl smiled. "I'll sneak you in some breakfast, I know how bad hospital food sucks.

"You're the best." Ron returned the smile. "I like Burger King's breakfast."

"You got it." Stargirl said as she leaned in and gave Ron a deep kiss, which he happily returned.

"Lantern? I…oh."

Ron and Stargirl broke their kiss, and turned to the doorway to see Kim standing there, eyes as wide as saucers.

"KP, hey." Ron said, waving with the hand that wasn't around Stargirl's waist. "Come to check up on me?"

"I…uh…"

"There? See, he's fine." Dr Charles growled as she reappeared in the doorway, grabbing Kim's wrist. "Now lets go so he can rest. Come back tomorrow at ten like everyone else."

"I…uh…" Kim stammered again as Dr. Charles led her out of the doorway with no resistance at all.

"Bye Kim." Ron called. "Well darn, I was hoping to introduce you two under better circumstances."

"You didn't really introduce us at all."

"Good point. See ya in the morning?"

"You bet handsome." Stargirl smiled, leaning down and giving Ron a quick peck on the forehead. "Sweet dreams."

"You too." Ron said with a yawn, settling down into the bed, as Stargirl headed for the door, deciding to take a different exit then the one Kim had been drug to.

-GL-

Hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. I don't know if I've thrown the standard issue declaimer out in a while, so…I own none of the characters in the story, and I'm not profiting at all from this. That being said, I hope you'll join me next time, when these questions may or may not get answered.

Have we seen the last of Fatality?

How will Kim deal with Ron's new relationship?

Will Kim and Courtney be friends?

Will Ron's stomach wound affect his eating habits?


	16. Shego's Plan or Kim's Anger

Chapter 16

Cleveland, Ohio

"Now with the opening of our Super Saver checking and savings account you are entitled to a discount price on a safety deposit box Miss. Goh." The banker smiled a toothy grin reserved for trying to make a sale.

"Well, Mr. May…Jeremy." Miss. Goh smiled as she leaned forward over the banker's desk. "Do you think it possible for me to see the safe, where the deposit boxes are?"

"Well…that is an unusual request…"Mr. May said, his eyes drifting downwards to the cleavage that Miss. Goh had on display. "But I suppose it wouldn't hurt. Please, follow me."

"My pleasure." Miss Goh purred as she rose from her chair and followed Mr. May out of his office, and down the hallway. They walked past a few more offices, before coming to a door that had no window, and no title on the name placard. Mr. May slid a key into the lock and swung the door open, holding it for Miss. Goh as she walked in.

"Wow." Miss Goh whistled as she took in the scene. There was a small area in front of the room, and then a large circular door, which was also locked in behind bars.

"The safe deposit boxes are inside the safe." Mr. May explained. "This is as far as I can take you, the bank manager is the only one who has access."

"Oh, that's ok." Miss Goh smiled. "I can go the rest of the way myself."

"I'm sorry?" Mr. May turned to his client, confused.

"I'm not." Miss. Goh said, as her right hand ignited in green flame. As Mr. May's eyes went wide, Miss Goh slashed her hand across his stomach, spilling blood all over the front of his white shirt.

"Ack!" Mr. May exclaimed as he dropped to his knees. "I…"

"Now, now, I need you to be quiet." Miss Goh smiled as she drew a flaming finger across Mr. May's throat, drawing more blood, and reducing his protests to a gurgle.

The dirty work done, Shego glanced around the room. Two security cameras were quickly dispatched by two quick energy blasts.

"Better make this quick." Shego said to herself as she made her way to the metal bars. A couple of quick slashes and she was on the other side. The safe door took a little longer, but after a couple minutes of using her flame engulfed hands like a cutting torch, the heavy door swung open, allowing Shego access to the inside.

"Ah, money." Shego said taking a deep breath once she was inside the safe. She then reached up under her skirt, and after some maneuvering pulled out a large canvas bag, that she had folded and tied around her waist. And then the stealing began.

Five minutes later her sack was filled to the brim with money. Shego slung it over her shoulder and made her way out of the safe and back to where the banker was laying in a pool of his own blood.

"Don't worry dear." Shego said squatting down by the bankers face. "My exit will bring help for you, and you're a really good salesman, I probably would have got the safe deposit box."

With that statement she planted a quick kiss on the pale bankers forehead and stood up. Holding her hands out in front of her and gritting her teeth, she released a powerful blast of green energy, blowing a hole in the exterior wall. Sunlight poured in as alarms rang throughout the bank. Wasting no more time Shego dashed through the hole into the alleyway outside.

Once outside, she ran to the back of the alleyway where a group of trashcans stood. Removing the lid from one of the cans, she pulled out a large black duffel bag and a grappling hook gun.

She aimed the gun at the roof of the building next-door and fired. Moments later she was on the roof, and digging into her duffel bag for her change of clothes. She kicked off her high heels and slid off her skirt, replacing them with a pair of mesh warm up pants and tennis shoes. She then unbuttoned her blouse and slid a tight red t-shirt over her head. Completing the change was a hair tie, pulling her hair back into a ponytail, and a dark pair of sunglasses.

She then emptied the money into the black duffel bag and zipped it up. Holding the canvas bag in her hands, she ignited it with her green flame and watched as it was reduced to ash. Police sirens filled the air, as Shego rose and sprinted across the roof. Once she reached the edge, she leapt, landing gracefully on the next building over, which was a few stories shorter. At the edge of that roof she attached her grapple to the edge and lowered herself to the alley. She then walked towards the main road and peered out. Everyone on the street was either walking towards, or looking at the bank, which was now surrounded by police cars.

With a satisfied smile, Shego stepped out of the alleyway next to Gold's Gym and headed in the opposite direction, appearing to be just another young lady on her way home from the gym.

-GL-

"You're joking, right?" Green Lantern said, standing up from his hospital bed. With a flash of green light, his uniform appeared underneath his hospital gown, which was then removed and placed on the bed.

"If I was joking I would say…where do you find a dog with no legs? Right where you left him." Superman said with a smile.

Green Lantern stared blankly at the man of steel for a moment.

"That's…that's awful."

"Well…to each his own." Superman replied, his smile fading. "But I am serious. You're on monitor duty until your wounds heal enough."

"But Doc Charles said that could take a week at the very least! And that's with the help my body gets from my ring!" Lantern protested. "I can't sit up there in space every night for a whole week, I'll go mad."

"If you over exert yourself you could reopen those wounds." Superman said firmly. "J'onn said he'd keep an eye on New York, covering your patrol routes and what not."

"But it's so boring up there."

"Have someone keep you company." Superman said, nodding his head to Stargirl, who was sitting in a chair against the wall, watching the debate.

"Well what about John?" Lantern said. "Fatality is still out there somewhere, I should be looking for her, and making sure she doesn't go after John. Not…not watching video monitors to make sure a tidal wave doesn't hit Key West or something!"

"Johns new apartment has been outfitted with our custom security system. Batman designed it, with the help from some of our top minds." Superman sighed. "If something happens, a signal will be sent right to the Watchtower, as well as the local authorities. Not to mention that once the system is set, it will be virtually impossible to break into."

"But…"

"No more buts!" Superman said, his voice rising slightly. "If Fatality did indeed take that fall like you think, she's probably going to be recovering for a while…just like you. And this isn't open for any more discussion. I've got to go now. See you at the Watchtower tonight."

"Stargirl." Superman nodded with a smile to the motionless girl as he made his way to the doorway and then took off in a blue and red streak.

"I can't believe you just argued with Superman!" Stargirl said a couple moments after he left. "I mean…Superman!"

"Yeah." Green Lantern huffed. "Oh, and thanks for all your help by the way."

"What was I supposed to do?"

"I dunno, maybe throw a, 'C'mon Supes, he'll be fine', out there?"

"Like that woulda worked." Stargirl rolled her eyes as she stood and walked over to GL.

"Well maybe you could have gone up and gave him a real sad look and said pretty please. I hear he's a sucker for a pretty face."

"Like someone else I know." Stargirl smiled, reaching up and giving GL a quick kiss on the lips. "Besides, maybe he's right, I rather like you being alive."

"Everybody's against me." Lantern sighed as he put his arm around Stargirl's shoulder and led her to the door. "You would think a guy who wills things into creation would get the benefit of a doubt when it comes to keeping his guts on the inside."

"Yeah, that was gross."

"What? Does that mean you wont help me change my bandages when they need it?" Lantern asked, mock hurt.

"Well, I'll help you get your shirt off." Stargirl smiled, as Lantern blushed. "But you're on your own with the bloody stuff."

"Fair enough. Let's go down and see John before we leave."

-GL-

"Hai!"

"Good, now use that with what we worked on earlier."

Kim nodded and took a few steps back and began to circle her opponent and instructor, Nightwing. Their battlefield was a thick tumbling matt set in the middle of the Titans Tower gym. Their dress was not the usual mission clothes or black and midnight blue costumes, though Nightwing's mask remained in place. Other then that he was dressed in a pair of gym shorts and a black tank top, with athletic tape wrapped in a protective fashion around his hands. Kim's hands were similarly wrapped, and her training outfit consisted of a pair of jogging pants, and a red sports bra.

Kim quickly closed the distance between the two, attacking with a spin kick that Nightwing easily ducked. As anticipated, Nightwing's counter attack was a leg sweep launched before both of Kim's feet were back on the ground. Bending her knee slightly she leapt up, and placed her hands on Nightwing's lowered shoulders. Using the momentum, she flipped over top of him, landing with the grace of an acrobat.

When Nightwing turned to face his relocated adversary he was greeted with a side kick to the ribs. As soon as Kim's kicking foot planted she whipped her other leg around, driving her foot into the center of the reeling Nightwing's chest. The blow knocked him on his back, and Kim rested her foot on the center of his chest, for the first time all workout allowing her a small smile.

"Perfect!" Nightwing smiled up from the matt. "And on the first try to, you really are a natural."

"Thanks" Kim said, removing her foot and extending a hand down to help Nightwing to his feet. "I've got a good teacher."

"Good point." Nightwing laughed. "You want to run through anything else?"

"No thanks", Kim replied. "I'm gonna hit the bag for a little bit."

"Alright." Nightwing said. "Just don't overdo yourself."

Kim nodded and headed over to the corner of the gym where the heavy bag hung. She grabbed her bottled water and gloves on the way, glancing over her shoulder at Nightwing who was taking a long drink from his water on his way to the men's locker room.

Once at the heavy bag, Kim strapped on her gloves and began going to work on the bag. She lashed out angrily at the bag, striking it as she would a human opponent, her feet moving constantly. Throughout the workout her mind kept drifting back to the hospital.

_Why was she there before me? _

_Did he call her first? First? He didn't call me at all! _

_What does he think he's doing with her? And why does it piss me off so bad?_

Her arm's now like jelly, Kim attacked the bag with one more left-right combo, before finishing with a roundhouse kick to the side of the bag. After leaning on the bag to catch her breath for a minute, she made her way across the gym to the women's locker room.

Once inside she flopped down on the padded folding char in front of her locker and began removing the workout items she kept in her locker. She angrily threw her gloves into the stall, and then tore at the tape wrapped around her hands. The tape was soon a wadded up ball that sailed across the room towards the trashcan.

"So, wanna talk about it?" Donna Troy's soft voice inquired from Kim's right.

Kim glanced over at Donna who had come into the locker room from the pool, which was located in the room next to the gym, but shared a locker room.

"Not really." Kim replied, bending over to untie her shoes.

"Already spill you're heart out to the heavy bag?" Donna asked as she walked over to her locker, running a towel over her damp hair.

Kim's reply was a grunt as she kicked off her shoes, and peeled her socks off, stuffing them into a duffel bag.

"Nightwing said you didn't say much during your training." Donna continued the one sided conversation, now running the towel over the rest of her body. "And since you were just doing your best Muhammad Ali on that poor bag for the last 20 minutes, I'm just gonna guess something's wrong."

"I thought Nightwing was the detective." Kim grunted sliding her feet into a pair of flip-flops, and pulling a loose t-shirt over her head.

"Harsh." Donna replied. "Look, learn anything you want from Nightwing about martial arts, stealth, detective work, strategy, leading a team, whatever. But don't keep things inside like he does. It'll drive you mad.

"Or turn you into Batman." Donna added under her breath.

Kim stood up, slung the bag over her shoulder and shut her locker.

"Alright, I'm sorry." She sighed. "It's just, I dunno…nothing I feel like talking about right now."

"Fair enough." Donna said as she hung her swimsuit up in her locker, and pulled out a pair of sweat pants and a tank top. "But if you do want to talk, you know where to find me."

"Thanks." Kim said, managing a small smile before turning towards the door.

"And Kim?" Donna added. "If you don't feel like talking to me, maybe you should try talking to him."

Kim stopped and looked back at Donna, who gave her a kind of smile that had a sort of sisterly quality to it. Kim returned the smile and continued on her way to her room.

-GL-

"Knock, knock." Green Lantern said, tapping his knuckles on the hospital door as he poked his head inside.

"Hey kid." John Stewart said with a wave from his hospital bed. "Come on in."

GL and Stargirl made their way into the room, smiling at the nurse as she made her way out of the room with John's chart.

"She's going to check with the doctors, but I should be getting my walking papers in a couple hours." John explained. "And I can finally get out of here."

"I know the feeling." Lantern said. "One night in here is more then enough."

"I heard you got dinged up a bit. How are you?"

"I'll be fine." Lantern shrugged. "Though Superman seems to think I need more healing time."

"Tough to argue with the big guy though."

"That's what she said." Lantern smiled, pointing to Stargirl, who gave Lantern a quick glare. "Oh, whoops. John this is Stargirl. Stars, John Stewart."

"Nice to meet you Mr. Stewart." Stargirl smiled as she walked over and shook his hand.

"The pleasure is mine, and please, just John." John smiled, then turning to Lantern. "I have to ask, what happened to Fatality."

"I…don't know." Lantern said looking down at the floor. "We fought, and I blasted her off the roof…but she cut me deep, and I passed out. I'm sorry, I should have been able to bring her in and…"

"Stop." John cut Lantern off with a raise of his hand. "If you hadn't shown up when you did, my wife and I would be dead, of that I'm sure. You can't beat yourself up over not capturing her. It'll send you to the nut house in this business."

"Or turn you into Batman." John added to himself.

"That's what I tried to tell him." Stargirl agreed.

"And if she comes back?" Lantern asked. "That security system Superman talked about can't protect you everywhere."

"No, but they gave me a signal device, to call you guys." John said. "And even if you did catch her, she would come back eventually…they always do."

"Yeah, that's the truth." Lantern said, thinking back to the countless times the members of Kim's rouges gallery had been captured, only to be out causing trouble in less then a month.

"Enough about that though." John said with a dismissive wave. "How do you like the job so far?"

"I love it." Lantern quickly admitted. "Though it has had its downs at times. But I'm starting to get real comfortable with my ring, and the gig is great for picking up chicks. Hey!"

John and Lantern laughed as Courtney slapped Lantern in the arm, sticking her tongue out as well, before she too joined the laughter.

"I agree, if it weren't for being a Green Lantern I never would have met Merayn, and it did take some getting used to having something that can do anything I want."

"How is your wife?" Stargirl asked, remembering the wounded woman Lantern had told her about.

"She's fine, thanks. A little sore but she'll be alright, a thanks once again to you." John smiled nodding at Green Lantern.

"All in a day's work." Lantern responded. "If I may ask a favor though?"

"Anything."

"When you get out of here, I would love to get together sometime and pick your brain about all things Lantern." Lantern said. "I've got the ring down pretty good, but I could use some pointers on that. And I'd like to find out more about the Corps. and everything else."

"Absolutely." John nodded. "You're the last one. You deserve…no, that's not the right word, you _need_ to know about the legacy you're carrying on. And I should be able to offer more insight then Batman's files at your Justice League headquarters."

"It'll be an honor." Lantern said, reaching over and extending his hand, which John shook. "I'll have your new address, and look you up…say next week sometime?"

"Sounds great." Said John. "Until then. Stargirl, it was nice to meet you. Make sure you keep this guy healthy."

"Nice meeting you as well." Stargirl smiled, and then patting her cosmic rod. "And don't worry, I have ways of keeping him out of trouble."

"Everybody's against me." Lantern grumbled under his breath, as he waved to John and made his way out of the room with Stargirl.

-GL-

Shego squinted her eyes as she walked in the front door of O'Neal's, a smaller, seedier restaurant in the Flats section of Cleveland. The establishment gave new meaning to the term dark and dreary. Any lights that were on, were very dim, and even that light was slightly obscured by the haze of cigarette and cigar smoke that hung in the air like a morning fog.

The restaurants setup was simple, a bar on the right side, booth's lining the left wall, a few tables in between and the kitchen in the rear. Shego stood in the doorway for a moment, several patrons at the bar turning towards the swinging door and the light it let in. A couple of their gazes stayed on Shego longer then she cared for, drunken eyes roving up and down her body, and over the briefcase she carried. Though not dressed in her jumpsuit, her short green skirt, and long sleeved black sweater still left little to the imagination.

Shego sent the onlookers a sharp glare that cut through the dank, and right through the men. They looked away quickly and nervously, settling back to their beers.

"You lost lady?" A rough voice inquired as a burly bald bouncer, wearing a tight black t-shirt and blue jeans, removed himself from his spot on the wall.

"I'm supposed to be meeting someone." Shego said, her voice cold as ice. She handed the bouncer a folded up piece of paper.

The bouncer looked at her for a moment before he unfolded the paper and read the name scrawled on it. Surprise washed over his face, and when his gaze returned to Shego, it was softer and apologetic.

"Rear booth, Miss Shego." The bouncer said, nodding his head in the direction. "My apologies, I didn't recognize you out of your uniform."

"Like you could be so lucky to see me out of my uniform." Shego said curtly, snatching the piece of paper out of the bouncer's hand. She held it in front of his face, and in a flash of green, the paper was reduced to ash. "A white Russian please."

"O-of course." The bouncer turned on his heel and headed quickly for the bar. As Shego made her way to the rear booth, she could hear the bouncer harshly demanding a White Russian from the bartender.

Shego slid into the rear booth, briefcase first, and made eye contact with the man sitting across from her. He was small in stature, no more then five foot nine, and would be hard pressed to weigh more then two hundred pounds. His face was thin, but soft, though his deep blue eyes showed the coldness of a man who had lived a hard life on the wrong side of the law.

He smiled at Shego, running his hands over the front of his black suit coat, trying to smooth some of the wrinkles out of the cheap suit.

"Miss Shego, it's a pleasure."

"It's all yours of course Small Time." Shego said with a smirk.

"Still with the sass I see." Small Time sighed.

"It's not something you lose easily." Shego admitted. "Unlike hair I see."

"That's cute." Small Time snapped, running a hand over his thinning brown hair. "Keep it up and the price of this information might go up."

"Aw, are you trying to play hardball with me?" Shego laughed. "Let's be serious, they don't call you Small Time just because of you're height."

"Such a bitch." Small Time muttered as the bouncer came over and placed the White Russian in front of Shego. He nodded briefly at the both of them, and quickly made his way back to the front of the bar.

"So, got the money?"

"Every last cent, my information?"

"Every last word." Small Time said, pulling a sealed manila envelope from inside his jacket and placing it on the table.

"Glad to hear it." Shego replied, placing her briefcase on the table.

Each item slid off the table, changing sides. The briefcase now sat next to Small Time, and the envelope rested on Shego's lap. Shego smiled, and took a drink from her White Russian.

"Ya know…" Shego mused, running her index finger around the top of her glass. "There could be an extra twenty grand in this deal for you, if you tell me who the source of this information is."

"You know I can't do that." Small Time said, surprised Shego would even ask. "I'm a man of my word, and I keep clients identities secret when they ask. And even if I didn't, it would be suicide to give away this guy."

"Yeah, I know." Shego admitted taking another drink. "Figured I'd try though, it's eating me alive inside to know who would sell this kind of information to me."

"Well, just put the contents of that envelope to good use, and you might get to find out anyway, for less then twenty large."

"What do you mean?" Shego asked leaning across the table.

"When word worked its way around about what you are planning, a lot of people were skeptical." Small Time explained. "A lot of people want you to succeed. And when I say a lot of people, I mean everybody. But your plan its…well, it's a little out there."

"That's what will make it work."

"That's what our guy is banking on." Small Time said. "And word has it, if you pull it off, he might have more work for you, that he'd deliver personally."

"Interesting." Shego said, leaning back. She thought for a moment, before finishing her drink, and sliding to the end of the booth. "Well, it's been nice, but I've got plane tickets to purchase."

"Taken care of." Small Time smirked. "One first class ticket for the 4:45. Not to mention identification and any papers you might need, all with a lovely fake name I might add."

"Well no shit." Shego chuckled, completely surprised. "This is starting to come together quite nicely."

"We all hope it does. Take care Shego, and good luck."

"Thanks." Shego said as she rose from the booth, firmly clutching the manila envelope. "And Small Time?"

"Yeah?"

"Use your cut of that money to buy a new suit."

Small Time sighed and shook his head as Shego shot him a wink, and headed towards the door.

'New York City, here I come.' Shego thought happily as she stepped out of the restaurant and into the blinding mid-day light.

-GL-

Kim walked quickly down the crowded New York street, dodging and avoiding people with expert skill. She was on her way to meet Bonnie, Monique and Ron for lunch at the pizza place that was slowly becoming the groups hang out. Though Ron had fought long and hard for the Bueno Nacho near his apartment to be the hangout, Draiman's Pizza and Subs was about the same distance from everyone's apartment.

Kim desperately wanted to talk to Ron about the other night in the hospital, but she couldn't do it with Monique and Bonnie there. Her only hope was that her and Ron were the first of the foursome to arrive.

She dodged a couple more people and turned the corner, spotting the red awning of Draiman's. She didn't spot Bonnie and Monique on the sidewalk coming from their direction, and she unconsciously crossed her fingers as she opened the door to the restaurant and stepped inside.

Kim's heart sank as she entered the restaurant. In their usual corner booth sat Bonnie and Monique, across from Ron and a blonde girl Kim didn't know, but could only be Stargirl. Kim's dismay grew, as the blonde seemed to be telling a story that had Bonnie and Monique in stitches. Bonnie put her head in her hands, laughing, and Monique reached across the table and clapped the blonde on the shoulder. Meanwhile, Ron sat there, his face slightly red, shaking his head.

"…girl you are gonna fit right in with this group." Monique was saying as Kim approached the table.

"Hey guys." Kim said softly standing at the end of the booth.

"Howdy K." Bonnie said, wiping tears from her eyes.

"'Bout time Kim." Monique scolded, checking her watch. "Pizza should be out any minute now."

"Hey KP." Ron smiled from the corner. "Kim, I'd like you to meet someone. This is Courtney, my girlfriend. Courtney, Kim Possible. Best friend meet girlfriend.

Girlfriend. The word hung in the air like a foul odor. As Courtney stood up, Kim confirmed that it was indeed Stargirl. And that made her feel even worse, because it meant that Ron had revealed his secret identity to her.

"Nice to meet you." Courtney said with a smile as she extended her hand. "I've heard a lot about you."

"Nice to meet you to." Kim replied distractedly. "Girlfriend?"

"Yeah, we kinda made it official earlier today." Courtney beamed.

"Slide on in ladies." Ron smiled, scooting over and patting the seat next to him.

Courtney slid in, getting right up next to Ron. As Kim sat down, she noticed Ron giving Courtney a squeeze on the leg, which she responded to by patting Ron's hand lovingly.

"Well it looks like we've finally got a blonde in our group again." Monique commented, as a waiter came over and placed a large mushroom and pepperoni pizza in front of them.

"Hey, I'm blonde." Ron commented, reaching across and dropping a slice of pizza on his plate.

"But you're not a girl." Bonnie commented. "Unless you've been hiding something from us?"

"The Ron is all man Bon."

"Is that true Court?"

"Well." Courtney said thoughtfully. "I would say about 75 man."

Bonnie and Monique roared with laughter, as Ron looked at her wide-eyed.

"I'm hurt."

Courtney smiled and gave Ron a kiss on the cheek. "You'll live."

"Yeah, I think you'll work out just fine as our new blonde." Monique continued.

"Yeah, a bit of an improvement on Tara." Bonnie agreed. "I love the girl, but she wasn't exactly the brightest bulb in the socket, right Kim?"

"Kim?" Bonnie asked again, as Kim was staring silently at her slice of pizza.

"Huh? Oh, yeah kinda dumb." She muttered, pulling a mushroom off her slice. "Mushrooms?"

"Sorry, my suggestion." Courtney said. "You don't like them?"

"Not really."

"Whoops." Ron said. "I thought you liked them."

"Want me to get you a different slice or two?" Courtney offered. "Since it was my idea to get them."

"No, that's ok." Kim replied, giving Courtney a weak smile. "I can just pick them off."

"You sure?" Ron asked.

"Yeah, it's no big."

"Sorry again." Courtney said, before turning back to Monique and Bonnie. "So tell me about this Tara girl."

"Oh boy." Monique said with a chuckle. "Where to start?"

"Well we could start with the massive crush she used to have on Ronnie." Bonnie smirked.

"She, what?" Ron asked with a mouthful of pizza.

"Oh yeah hot stuff." Monique grinned. "She had it for you bad, but apparently you never noticed."

"Well I'll be." Ron shrugged, then stuck his chest out and declared in a big sarcastic voice, "Well actually, I knew all along. I can always tell when a girl likes me. I was just waiting for the right one to show interest in me."

To emphasize his point Ron put his arm around Courtney and gave her a squeeze, punctuating it with a kiss on the top of her head.

"Ohhhh, brownie points." Monique and Bonnie said in unison.

"He's building them up pretty quick." Courtney nodded, leaning across the table speaking softly to Monique and Bonnie. "I hope he cashes the points in soon though."

Bonnie and Monique laughed, as Ron demanded to know what was said. Kim began to tune them down, and eventually out as she picked the last of the mushrooms off her slice and began to eat it.

She would have a hard time talking to Ron about this situation. Monique and Bonnie had clearly been compromised, taken in by this blonde headed home wrecker. And worst of all, Kim couldn't even find it in her to hate Courtney, despite it all.

'I sure hope Donna is home later' Kim thought to herself with a sigh that went unnoticed by her happy friends.

-GL-

Shego slid her keycard into the lock on the door of room 6660. The light on the lock went from red to green and clicked, allowing Shego to enter.

She walked into her hotel room, which was another gift from her mysterious supporter. That person had a sick sense of humor apparently, as Shego's fake identification; credit card and hotel room were all made out or registered to Ronnie Kim.

Shego set her suitcase and duffel bag in the closet area inside the door and made her way into the room. It was modestly sized; a queen-sized bed was off to her right, with an easy chair and an end table next to it. Across from the bed on the left wall were two hotel-sized dressers, with a television set perched atop one. The far wall consisted of floor to ceiling windows, with a sliding glass door in the center that led out to a balcony.

She walked past the bathroom and into the main room, unzipping her jacket as she made her way to the balcony. She pulled a pair of high powered binoculars out of the inside pocket and tossed the jacket on the desk, which was on the other side of the bed, and slid open the door.

Shego stepped out into the night air and smiled to herself. The view was clearly the perk of this hotel room. It looked right out onto the bay, and of course, Titans Tower.

She put the glasses to her eyes and scanned across the surface of the tower.

"Time to see how good my intel is." Shego said, "Should be right about…bingo."

Shego aimed her binoculars at one of the lights on in the tower. Sure enough, just like the information she bought said, it was Kim's room.

Kim was sitting on the edge of her bed, arched forward with her face buried in her hands. A dark woman, who Shego assumed was Troia, though her face was blocked slightly by Kim's hair, sat on the other side of Kim with an arm around her shoulder, talking to her.

"Perfect." Shego smiled, lowering the binoculars. "Perfect intel, Kimmie looks bummed out about something, this might be easier then I thought. A couple days of recon, and I'll be ready to go."

"On Friday night. Kim Possible dies."

-GL-

A/N- another chapter done as our story moves along. Next chapter will feature a big Friday night for Ron and Courtney, and also for Kim now. And what exactly is Shego's plan, and will it work? And who is Shego's nameless benefactor? Actually, that wont be revealed next chapter that one's a ways off. Anyway, hope ya enjoyed.

-R


	17. Dates Pt One

Chapter 17

Dates… 

"Computer, open new log file, Thursday morning 12am-1am. Green Lantern reporting."

"Log created. Continue when ready."

Green Lantern sighed and sank down into his chair in the Watchtower's monitor womb. He had spent the last several hours scanning monitors, responding to alarms, and dispatching his fellow Justice Leaguers to deal with various disasters. And at the end of each hour he had to make a log of all the activities. It was all the excitement of a chapter summary in high school English class, Lantern thought to himself.

"Earthquake in the African sector at about 12:15." Lantern began. "Sent Superman to handle it. Superman reported back in at 12:30 to report no causalities and minimal structural damage. At around 12:25, alerted Batman to a high-speed chase that had made its way into Gotham from Bludhaven. Chase ended a short time later thanks to the local authorities. Shortly after that, the Green Lantern received a verbal lashing from The Batman, on what not to bother him with."

Lantern paused and looked over to a flashing light on one of the display boards. It was a light indicating that someone was teleporting in from Earth. The computer ran its typical DNA scan and informed Lantern it was the Flash.

"At 12:35, The Watchtower was a victim of another prank call. It was the third such call of the night. The computer traced the call to the Justice League's former headquarters in Happy Harbor, now the headquarters of Young Justice." Lantern smiled and shook his head. "This member assumes no responsibility for what might happen to Superboy next time I see him."

"Hey there, Green Jeans." The Flash said with a grin as he zipped in to the monitor womb.

"12:55 A.M., the superhero known as the Flash showed up. Presumably to annoy the already bored Green Lantern." Lantern said loudly, before he swiveled around in his chair to grin at the Flash.

"Ouch." The Flash feigned offense. "I guess I'll just take these Philly cheese steaks back to Philadelphia then."

"Computer, strike last entry from the record." Lantern said salivating. "Pause log."

"Log paused."

"Man, you are a life saver." Lantern said walking over to the table where the Flash was unloading the cheese steaks and sodas.

"I do what I can." Flash said as he pulled back his mask and ruffled his red hair. "Damn mask hair."

"Mmm. It's like a cheese covered heaven." Lantern mumbled as he took a big bite from the sandwich.

"Yeah, straight from the streets of Philly. Nobody makes 'em better." Flash remarked, biting into his.

"Ya know, I hate to ask you because you brought me this wonderful sandwich." Lantern said after a long sip of his soda. "But I need a favor."

"Sure pal."

"Think you can cover up here for me Friday night?" Lantern asked. "I made plans with Stargirl before I got hacked up, and I really don't want to break them."

"Quite the predicament." Flash mused, leaning back in his chair. "One that I can't really help you with I'm afraid."

"Aw, c'mon, it's just one night." Lantern pleaded. "I'll make it up, I swear."

"I don't doubt you would." Flash smiled. "But I'm helping Impulse out with some stuff in the early evening, and then I've got plans with my wife later on."

"Damnit." Lantern slumped down in his chair. "Stargirl's gonna be bummed."

"Sorry, but…" Flash trailed off. "All hope might not be lost."

Flash stood up and zipped out the door and down the hall. Seconds later he returned with a smile on his face.

"What?" Lantern asked

"I just checked the duty roster. Wonder Woman would be up here if you weren't on medical watch. We'll get her to do it."

"I already asked." Lantern shook his head. "She said it was a bad idea to have two of us pretty much off duty on a Friday night."

"Well, if you were all healed up, the schedule would go back to normal right?"

"Yeah, that's what Superman said."

"Well then, we're in business, come over here."

Lantern stood up and walked over to the Flash.

"Alright, hold on to the table, this is probably going to feel a little weird." Flash instructed. He then placed his hand over Lantern's wound, and began to vibrate rapidly. After a couple seconds he stopped and took a step back. "There we go."

"Whoa…" Lantern stumbled back a couple of steps before catching himself. "What the hell did you just do?"

"Check your wound."

Lantern pulled up his uniform shirt and stared at his taped up midsection. A pair of construct surgical scissors appeared and cut through the gauze and bandages. On the skin below was not the horrible looking wound that was inflicted just a few nights ago. There was still a scar, but it looked like it was from an injury that was months old.

"No way." Lantern said as he poked his midsection and ran his hand over the scar. "It feels fine, how did you do that?"

"I leant you some of my speed." Flash explained. "Sped up your metabolism and the healing process enough to mend your wound. I usually only do that in extreme cases, but I figured I could make an exception."

"Brother, I said it before, and I'll say it again. You are a life saver!" Lantern grinned slapping the Flash on the arm.

-GL-

Shego leaned back in her chair and rubbed her eyes. She had been staring at the blueprints for Titans Tower for what seemed like forever. After determining which room was Kim's, she had found her entry point into the tower, and the quickest way to Kim's room.

The hardest part now would be when to get in. If she were to catch Kim by surprise, the best time would be after the team returned from a mission. Kim would most likely be tired, seeking the comfort of her room. But if the Titans didn't leave the tower, it would make Shego's job slightly more difficult. It would still be possible to get in undetected, but it would be easier to override security systems than it would be to sneak past a tower full of super heroes.

Friday night was the night she had decided on. It gave her one more night to check and recheck her plan. All of Friday would be spent waiting for the Titans to leave, and Shego would have to be ready to move on a moment's notice, for who knew how long her window of opportunity would remain open.

'Of course,' Shego thought to herself. 'Now would be a good a time as any to work up my backup plan.'

With that thought Shego moved the blueprint from the table and opened another file, reading through it and taking notes, a sly smile on her face the entire time.

-GL-

"I can't take anymore!" Bonnie protested, slamming her book shut and tossing it on the coffee table. "If I look at any more fabric samples tonight I'm going to cry!"

Monique laughed and buried her face in her own book with a sigh. The two had spent the last two hours pouring over different fabric samples, and various other points of fashion in preparation for their test Friday.

"Ok, I agree." Monique sighed, lifting her head up and rolling on her side to face Bonnie. Monique had decided to study while lying on the floor of their apartment, hoping the slight discomfort would keep her focused.

"I think we should study…no, cancel that word…discuss other matters." Bonnie suggested, pulling her legs up underneath her, taking an Indian style sitting position on the sofa.

"More important matters?" Monique smiled

"Most important."

"Ron and Kim?"

"Bingo."

"Well," Monique began, "We both like Courtney. But we both noticed a change in Kim the other day."

"A blind man could have seen she was uncomfortable with that situation."

"Ron didn't." Monique countered.

"No one ever said he was good at reading girls." Bonnie laughed.

"So do we have a plan?"

"Break up Ron and Courtney, sending Ron into Kim's arms?"

"Too evil." Monique shook her head. "Ron deserves to be happy, with everything that's happened to him. And the way he acted around her, well I haven't seen him that happy since back in high school."

"True." Bonnie mused. "Plus we don't know for sure that he would even go to Kim. He's changed so much; he might totally shut Kim out, or run away again."

"That leaves us with pretty much only one option then."

"Get Kim hooked up?" Bonnie grinned.

"Get Kim hooked up." Monique confirmed with a nod.

-GL-

Green Lantern flew low and fast. He was speeding about six feet over the field below him; his target was a small tree covered hill about one hundred yards ahead. Moments after the Martian Manhunter arrived to relieve him of monitor duty, an alert had come in to the Watch Tower from Batman.

The alert was just a signal, informing the Watch Tower of Batman's location. The concern being that Batman rarely sent an alert signal. After some quick convincing, J'onn agreed to let GL take the call.

Lantern reached the hill and set himself down at the base. He made his way up to the trees as quickly and silently as possible, toning down his green glow, which would make him an obvious target in the darkness of early morning.

The hill overlooked another valley, which had similar hills on all sides. A bonfire that was starting to die down illuminated the valley, casting the shadows of the hundred or so people milling about in the valley. Several vehicles dotted the area as well, most notably an army styled transport truck.

A construct pair of binoculars appeared over Lantern's eyes as he scanned the valley for The Batman. If he was captured the army truck might be a place to start, but if he were wrong he could…

"I wasn't expecting you." The shadows near Lantern whispered.

"Good Christ!" Lantern whispered sharply, his binoculars vanishing. "How about a little warning? You almost gave me a heart attack there, Bats."

"Here's a warning." Batman replied as he knelt down next to Lantern. "Don't call me Bats."

"Good warning. So what have we got?"

"A radical religious group." Batman began. "One of their members is a higher ranking military man."

"How highly ranking?"

"High enough to get that transport truck with a surface to surface missile and launcher out of his base without anyone questioning it."

"I see. Their plans?"

"Use the missile to "cleanse" sinners from a major city." Batman replied grimly.

"Which major city?" Lantern asked, dreading the answer.

"From this point, given the range of that particular missile, they could hit Gotham, New York, or Bludhaven."

"How convenient." Lantern sighed. "Glad I came then. If Nightwing were here we'd have all three cities represented."

"He is here." Batman replied. "Down there somewhere."

"Undercover?"

"We've been keeping an eye on this group for awhile." Batman nodded. "Neither of us thought they would move this quickly though. They called together this meeting at the last minute tonight. Nightwing was able to alert me before he got here."

"So which one is he?" Lantern asked, scanning the people below.

"I'm not sure." Batman admitted. "This religion does not allow any electronic devices for its members…cell phones, pagers, etc. And they scan everyone before all their gatherings."

"Yet they are planning on using an electronic device to reign holy cleansing on people." Lantern rolled his eyes. "So what's our plan?"

"The cult leader is supposed to be on hand for tonight's…activities. We haven't been able to identify him yet. Once he makes his presence known, Nightwing is going to signal us somehow. We're going to converge on the leader, you've got to make sure that missile can't launch."

"Sure, give me the hard part."

"You are up to it aren't you? Healed enough?" Batman demanded silently. "Nightwing's in a great risk down there, and if you're not…"

"I'm fine." Lantern assured him in a confident voice. "Just tell me when to move."

"You'll know when I do, scan the crowd and look for Nightwing's signal."

About ten or fifteen minutes went by, not a word passing between the two Leaguers. Both scanned the crowd below, looking for Nightwing, or any sign he might give. Lantern was making a pass when a sight caught his eye that made him laugh. An elderly man, with shoulder length gray hair and a raggedy gray beard fell to the ground while walking towards a group of people. Lantern stifled a laugh, knowing it would earn him a glare from the Batman.

"What is it?"

"Sorry, that old guy just fell down." Lantern responded sheepishly.

"Where?" Batman demanded

"Two o'clock." Lantern responded "About fifty yards in front of that large group."

Batman found the old man in question and watched him for a moment. The old man tried to rise to his feet but fell again, and again. He had now fallen down three times. In frustration he slapped the ground hard with his left hand. Finally another member of the group walked over to him and offered a helping hand. The old man took it and nodded thanks, patting the younger fellow on the back, his hand spread wide, with only four fingers showing.

"It's Nightwing." Batman said, tucking his binoculars into his utility belt. "He just told us where to strike; they launch the missiles in four minutes."

"Huh?" Lantern asked, completely confused.

"Just get to that missile, and take out everyone around it. One of them will be the man who can fire them. And make it bright."

"Bright?" Lantern smiled, as the green glow returned to his uniform. "I can do that."

Lantern took off from the hill zooming over the crowd, bathing them in a green glow. He made a beeline straight for the transport truck, where several of the men who were milling about were now drawing guns.

"Well that's not very Christian of you." Lantern remarked as the men opened fire, the bullets ricocheting of a construct bubble Lantern formed around himself. Blasts of green energy shot off the bubble, melting firearms into twisted scrap. "Now that's better."

Lantern touched down in front of the men who immediately rushed him. Lantern crouched into a combat stance, a construct Bo staff forming in his hands and a grin forming on his face.

"Let's boogie."

Meanwhile, confusion reigned in the massive crowd, which was just what Batman had planned. He swooped through the cultists, dropping a package at the feet of an old man who had trouble walking. He reached the group of people Nightwing had pointed out and landed in front of them. Eyes grew wide as the Batman rose to his full height.

"Shoot him!" The man third from the left shouted, pulling the man to his right in front of him before he turned and ran.

The rest of the group of seven reached into their jackets or pants and pulled out a variety of handguns. Before any of the men could think about firing, small bat shaped shurikens were lodged in their hands, the guns dropping to the ground as they howled in pain.

Batman took the man that had covered the leader's escape out with a solid side kick to the stomach. Two more men rushed him, one from each side, and each was dispatched with an elbow to the face. The other four went to make their move, but stopped when Batman simply ducked. Moments later an escrima stick sailed over Batman's head, striking the first man in the forehead, rendering him unconscious. Another escrima stick from nowhere took care of the second man. The last two men looked at each other and ran in opposite directions.

"Where did he go?" Nightwing demanded as he ran up to Batman. The old man disguise had been replaced with his regular uniform.

"There." Batman pointed ahead to the cult leader, who was still making his way through the panicked crowd.

"Batman?" Lantern's voice crackled in his ear. "None of these guys have any sort of launch device or launch codes on them."

"Then he must have it." Batman said. "Let's go."

Batman and Nightwing took off through the crowd, following the path that had already been cleared. Once the leader was a safe distance from the crowd and the missiles, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small device no bigger than a PDA.

"Now!" Batman shouted.

At the same time Nightwing and Batman drew their weapons and launched them. A bolo flew from Nightwing's hand and wrapped itself around the leader's feet. As he tumbled to the ground, a batarang knocked the device out of his hand.

The man slithered towards the device, and was just about to reach it when the device was enclosed in a glowing green lock box.

The man looked up at the grinning face of the Green Lantern. Then he glanced over his shoulder at the grim looking figures behind him. The man sighed in defeat and dropped his head into the dirt.

-GL-

Shego uncrossed and crossed her legs, turning the page of the New York Times as she did so. She was now into hour three of her surveillance of Titans Tower, which now consisted of sitting on a bench in the park, watching the Tower and waiting for the Titans to leave.

Earlier in the day she had made her rounds disguised as a jogger, and discovered the platform the Titans used to get across the bay to the island. The access panel was hidden behind some thick shrubs, and after examining the area she had located the platform itself submerged a couple feet beneath the water. Shego had smiled at the thought of using Kim's personal access code to ride the platform over to the tower.

Now in the early afternoon, Shego sat and waited. A messenger bag containing everything she would need for the job sat next to her on the bench. A courier had delivered the bag and most of its contents to her at the hotel this morning, another 'gift' from her mysterious benefactor. To a passerby she appeared to be reading the paper and listening to an iPod. However instead of the latest music, Shego's iPod was monitoring all the Titans' communications channels.

She flipped another page of the paper, wondering what in the world it took to get the Titans out of their Tower long enough for Shego to do what needed to be done. There had been several departures up to that point, but none were what Shego needed. She figured she needed at least two hours to breach their security, make it look like she wasn't there, and get into position for Kim.

Another factor was the Tower being empty. Three times when the group had been called out for an emergency, they had left at least one member back at the Tower. A hoax call to get the last member out was out of the question, they would be back too soon and be suspicious.

Some good news had occurred after their last outing. Nightwing and Arsenal had both departed for the remainder of the night. Nightwing had gone to Bludhaven, and Arsenal to spend time with his daughter.

That meant that Troia, Kim, Starfire, and Cyborg were the only active Titans in the tower. Now all she needed was an emergency.

Another half hour passed before the headphones in Shego's ears finally crackled to life.

"Watchtower to Titans Tower…" "Titans Tower, will this be for delivery or pick up?" 

Shego shook her head, and dialed in the proper frequency on her iPod to match the Tower's video feed. Her tiny display came to life and showed a split screen of the Green Lantern and, of course, Kim Possible, whose smile faded slightly when she saw Green Lantern's face appear on her screen.

"Cute Kim." Lantern smiled, a smile Shego found oddly familiar. "Is your team busy right now?"

"Not at all," Kim replied, and then much to Shego's disgust added, "What's the sitch?" 

"Well we're picking up some wild weather patterns in the Midwest." Lantern replied. "A lot of tornados, more than usual for this time of year. Weather Wizard might be involved. We're stretched a little thin right now though, we were wondering if you could give us some support."

"Of course, what do you need?" 

"I'm sending two sets of coordinates to your computer. Split your people up how you see fit, I'm on damage control at the first set, and the Flash will be going after the Weather Wizard from the second set."

"Alright, I've got them." Kim responded. "We'll take our jet and meet you there, ASAP. Tower out."

With that Kim's half of the screen went black, leaving only a bewildered looking Green Lantern on the other half. He shook his head and then closed the transmission.

Shego smiled and pulled the earplugs out of her ears and wrapped them around the device, sliding it into her messenger bag. As she folded up the newspaper she wondered if the cold shoulder Kimmie was giving the Lantern had anything to do with her sob fest the other night with Troia.

It is of little consequence though, Shego thought to herself, soon the Tower will be empty, and by tonight Kim Possible will be dead.

-GL-

"What about Robin?" Monique mused.

"You mean the _BOY_ Wonder?" Bonnie asked. "C'mon Mon, we're looking for a date not a babysitting job."

"Tough crowd." Monique sighed as she took a picture that Bonnie was offering her. "Nope. Married."

"Damn, the stretching would make for some great…"

"Is that all you think about?" Monique asked with a smile, cutting Bonnie off. "She can hook up anywhere, she needs a nice relationship.

Monique set the picture of Elongated Man down in the 'No' pile and sighed leaning against the bed.

Spread out on the floor in front of the two girls was three piles of photographs. There was a maybe pile, a no pile, and a yes pile. Bonnie had used the Internet to look up various super team rosters, and newspaper clippings, while Monique searched for photographs and information on the male superhuman populace. Together they had put together an impressive database of male superheroes.

"Who's next?" Monique asked

"Jay Garrick."

"Wait, isn't he like the original Flash?"

"World War Two Mystery Man himself." Bonnie smiled.

"Ok, I'm not even going to ask how he's still alive and kicking, but I will ask what the hell he's doing in this group of heroes."

"Oh like you didn't love listening to your grandpa's stories of the good old days." Bonnie laughed as she tossed the picture into the 'no' pile.

"I guess so," Monique laughed. "But I thought we agreed speedsters were a bad idea because of the bedroom implications.

"Monique, is that all you ever think about?"

-GL-

Ron zipped into his apartment through the window, his Green Lantern uniform melting away to his street clothes as soon as his feet touched the floor.

"Ring, what time is it?"

_5:05:15…16…17…_

"Stop. Shit, shit, shit!" Ron exclaimed looking around his apartment. As usual it resembled a disaster area.

"No, that's not fair to say, at least not today." Ron said. Having just spent the last several hours cleaning up literal disaster areas in the wake of devastating tornados, he didn't feel it proper to liken his situation to those peoples'. "But this place is still a wreck."

His plan to have his apartment spotless by tonight had been sidetracked by the usual slew of sleeping, superheroing, and super paper working. The worst part of being a Justice Leaguer had to be making case files for most situations. There were exceptions of course, cases that didn't warrant reports, but as Ron's luck would have it, everything he encountered in the last day or so warranted a report.

So now here he was, less than two hours before his date, with a trashed apartment, and a trashed body. He needed a major shower, and a shave, and his apartment needed a miracle.

"However," Ron smiled, looking at his ring. "Miracles happen to be right up my alley these days.

He held his right fist out, and with a thought three glowing construct maids appeared. One with a duster, one with a vacuum and the other one armed with a laundry basket and all the organizational skills Ron could will to life. With a thought, the maids set about their tasks, leaving Ron with only his body to clean.

"And if I were really lazy…" The chimes of his cell phone interrupted Ron's musings, as he reached into his pocket to retrieve the device.

"Y'llo."

"Hey cutie."

"Hey honey." Ron smiled at the sound of his girlfriend's voice. "What's up?"

"Oh, not too much, just wondering if we are still on tonight?" Courtney asked, her voice hopeful.

"Well yeah," Ron said. "Why wouldn't we be?"

"Oh I dunno." Courtney said. "I saw you on the news, and I wasn't sure if you would be back in time."

"Actually, I just got home a couple minutes ago, but I wouldn't miss tonight for the world, you know that."

"Well I was just checking." Courtney said, trying to keep the smile out of her voice. "Besides, you and Kim seemed to be working awful close on the news; I thought maybe you would want to hang out with her instead tonight."

"Yeah right." Ron grunted. "The tornados were nicer to me out there than Kim was. Besides, you know you're the only super chick for me."

"Damn straight." Courtney said firmly, before giggling. "I'm just messing with you, babe. Kim was shitty with you though?"

"Yeah, it was weird." Ron admitted. "From the moment she got there she hardly said a word to me, and barely even looked at me. Not even a thank you for the construct umbrella I made for her and Donna when it started hailing."

"Well it was a League thing, right? So you were calling the shots?"

"Yeah…"

"Think that might have something to do with it?" Courtney mused

"Maybe." Ron shrugged. "She's always been in charge, especially working with me, but it seemed like it was something more than that."

"Well don't let it eat you up." Courtney said. "I'm sure it's nothing, probably just one of those days. Besides, I want you totally focused tonight. Namely focused on me."

"Oh you don't have to worry about that, Stars." Ron smiled. "Batman could be doing standup comedy in my kitchen and you'd still be my center of attention."

"Well, I'm glad to hear that I'm more appealing than Batman." Courtney laughed, shushing Ron's attempt to protest. "I know what you meant. I'll let you go though; I've got to start getting ready."

"Yeah, me too." Ron said. "See you at seven?"

"On the dot. Tootles."

"Adios."

Ron flipped his phone shut and tossed it on the kitchen table. With a big smile on his face he headed towards the shower, leaving the construct maids to do their work.

-GL-

Shego strolled through the hallways of Titans Tower, her boots clicking on the marble floors as she made her way to Kim's quarters. She had left her street clothes hidden in the shrubs in the park, far enough away from the access panel that they wouldn't be found. She was now clad in her regular green and black jumpsuit with the messenger bag slung over her shoulder and a small silver device clipped to her belt.

The device was one of the items in the bag she had received. According to the note attached to it, this particular device somehow kept her from being picked up by any security devices. Shego wasn't sure how it worked, but going by the fact that no alarms were going off, it did work.

She reached a T intersection in the hallways and glanced down at her PDA. A schematic of the Tower was displayed on the screen, and it was indicating she go left to reach the elevator bank. She made her way there and took notice that this particular hallway seemed to be dedicated to the team's history. The walls were lined with group photographs of the various incarnations of the Teen Titans over the years.

Once the team photos stopped pictures of individual Titans began. Looking closer Shego noticed that each of the pictures had a gold placard underneath them noting the heroes' name, birth date, and date of death. She smiled as she finally reached the elevators, hoping that the Titans had a recent picture of Kim to add to the wall of dead heroes.

Shego entered the elevators and pressed the button for the floor that the living quarters were on. A second later the doors whooshed open. If the hallway weren't different Shego would swear she hadn't moved at all.

"The old days woulda been easier if the Doc had elevators that quick." Shego muttered to herself as she made her way to Kim's room.

She finally reached the silver door with the 'Possible' nameplate next to it. Rooting through her bag, Shego moved in front of the door, which caught her by surprise by sliding open.

"Well then…" Shego smiled, stepping inside the room. "I didn't even get to use the electronic lock picks."

The door slid shut behind her as she looked around the room. The room was similar to a loft apartment. The main area doubled as the living room and bedroom. Shego walked through and into the kitchen nook, which was a small area consisting of a refrigerator, sink, stove, and some counter space with a toaster and microwave. The area was separated from the rest of the apartment by a small bar.

Next to the kitchen was a bathroom, which made Shego whistle softly when she walked in. It contained all the usual bathroom fixtures, but included a Jacuzzi hot tub and a decently sized makeup table and chair.

Leaving the bathroom she walked back over to the bed area, which was close to the large walk in closet. According to Shego's floor plans, the closet had a crawl space above it. Designed for additional storage, Shego doubted it was something Kim accessed as soon as she came home from a mission, thus making it the perfect hiding spot.

Shego spotted the section of ceiling that led to the crawlspace and smiled. She returned to the bedroom door for a moment, placing a small electronic device no larger than a quarter at the base of the wall by the door. She waved her hand in front of it and watched as a red light blinked on her PDA. Shego would know the exact moment Kim Possible entered the room, and whether or not she was alone.

Anxious with anticipation, Shego returned to the closet and prepared to get into position.

-GL-

"Well Kendra? Skirt or sweats?" Courtney Whitmore asked impatiently before resuming her pacing.

"Honestly, is it really that big of a deal?" Kendra Saunders asked. "I mean you two are already dating, I doubt he's gonna call the whole thing off because of what you are wearing."

"I know, but I still want to look good for him." Courtney sighed. She had been out of the shower for almost an hour, but was still wrapped in her bath towel, trying to decide on an outfit. "Maybe I could wear your Hawkgirl wings; I bet that would impress him."

"And you're worried about the skirt being tough to lie around and snuggle in?" Kendra laughed. "Try doing it with a twelve foot wing span."

Courtney laughed and moved to the dresser, opening the top drawer.

"Let's table the pants discussion for now." She said, rummaging through the drawer. "Should I go thong, or these cute blue boy shorts with the white stars on them."

"Well that depends on two things. One, is he planning on wearing his black boxers with the cute little lanterns on them? And two, are you planning on him seeing your choice of undergarments?"

"If he does have underwear like that, I'm going to die laughing." Courtney smiled. "And I don't know about that second question. I'm just going to play it as it happens. I don't want to rush anything. But like Mr. Terrific is always saying, be prepared."

"I think Michael would have a heart attack if he knew what situations you were applying his advice to." Kendra commented, standing up from the bed and walking over to a desk chair where five different tops were draped. "And with that being said, go with the thong."

"I was hoping you would say that." Courtney replied as she grabbed a black thong and slid into it. "Find a good shirt?"

"Not only that, I've got your whole damn dress plan."

"Yeah? Let's hear it." Courtney urged.

"This black top." Kendra held up a sleeveless black and low cut top.

"This white skirt." She laid the top on the bed, and grabbed the mini skirt, holding it up before laying it on the bed next to the shirt.

"And…" Kendra began as she walked over to the closet and bent over to the neatly organized shoes. "These black boots."

Kendra set the knee-high boots on the ground next to the bed, giving Courtney a good look at the ensemble. The look brought a smile to the young blonde's face.

"That's great, Kendra. But what about the laying on his couch part of the night. I don't want my ass hanging out the entire time we're watching a movie."

"Right, you just want your ass to be hanging out when you two are lying in his bed." Kendra commented, causing Courtney to blush slightly. "Well assuming he can pick his jaw up off the ground to go on with this whole date, you just change when you get back to his place. Throw the sweats in a bag, and change into them when you get to his place."

"Kendra honey, what would I do without you?" Courtney smiled, hugging her friend. "I'm so worked up about this date that I can't even think straight."

"Hey, that's what friends are for. Now you finish getting ready, he's going to be here in a half hour."

"A half hour! Omigosh!"

Kendra laughed as she turned and headed towards the door leaving Courtney to frantically finish getting dressed.

-GL-

"Well, if you guys were real, I would give you one hell of a tip." Ron commented to his maids as he surveyed the apartment.

He walked back into the bathroom to leave the maids to do the finishing touches. Once in the bathroom he grabbed the dark red polo shirt that hung from the shower curtain bar. He smoothed a couple wrinkles out and pulled it over his head, giving silent thanks to the wrinkle removal spray bottle.

"Three dollars well spent." Ron smiled as he gave himself a couple squirts of cologne.

He moved from the bathroom to his bedroom where he gathered up his wallet, house keys, and belt. He looped the belt as he made his way into the living room, scooping his cell phone off the table as he went.

"Well gang." Ron smiled at the maids, all of whom were standing around with nothing left to clean. "Back to ring land for you."

The maids vanished as Ron made his way out of the spotless apartment to meet Courtney at the mansion.

-GL-

"What a day." Kim groaned as she stepped out of the Titans jet.

"Yeah, I could do without any more of these." Donna agreed from behind Kim. "I'm pretty sure fighting a Meta would have been easier."

"I need a major recharge." Cyborg added, looking at a gauge on his right forearm. "Helping with those evacuations took enough out of me; stopping to quell that prison riot just about did me in."

"When I was little we would stop at a mall or a nice restaurant on our way home from family trips." Kim commented. "Now my trip is to the Midwest to fight tornadoes and my mall is a prison to stop a riot."

"It's hell getting old." Donna laughed.

The trio made their way out of the hanger and took the elevator downwards. Cyborg got off on the level where his lab was located, bidding Kim and Donna goodnight. The next stop was the floor where everyone's quarters were located. As the elevator halted to a stop Kim and Donna stared at each other.

"Paper, scissor, rock to see who has to file the log report?" Kim asked, holding out her fist.

"Kory kinda stiffed us on that didn't she?" Donna remarked, referring to Starfire who had flown off by herself after the prison riot. "I'll take care of it Kim, get some rest."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, you had a long day, don't worry about it."

"Yours was just as long, Donna."

"Kim…" Donna began, placing her hand on Kim's shoulder. "I know that wasn't exactly easy on you out there today. You hardly said a word to Green Lantern the entire time we were out there."

"I know…" Kim dipped her head. "It's hard; I don't know what to say to him. It would be easier if I knew what I was feeling. Other than jealousy."

"It'll come to you. Just give it time. Take a hot shower, have some tea, and take the rest of the night off." Donna said reassuringly.

"Thanks Donna." Kim said as she exited the elevator. "Good night."

"Good night."

"Relax." Kim muttered to herself as she walked down the hall a few steps and entered her room. "Harder than it sounds when Ron's out on the town again."

Kim kicked off her boots at the door, which she locked behind her, and walked into the bathroom. She turned the water on for the Jacuzzi, holding her hand under the faucet until the water hit the right temperature. She plugged the drain and walked out to the kitchen.

In the kitchen she found herself a protein bar and a bottle of water. Munching on the bar she made her way around the room, lighting various candles that she had set up throughout the room.

"Dim lights by fifty percent." Kim spoke aloud once the candles were lit. The lighting dimmed appropriately, the voice command accepted.

Finishing the protein bar Kim strolled into the bathroom, which was starting to fill with steam. Satisfied with the water level she turned off the Jacuzzi faucet, and turned on the shower.

Next to the shower Kim stood on a rug in front of two chutes. Stripping down, she tossed her mission clothes into the chute on the left, which led to a laundry room full of industrial strength washing machines. The chute on the right was for personal clothes. Each Titan's chute emptied into their personal laundry container and was in a traditional laundry room, ready for whenever the Titan had time to do the laundry.

Kim tossed her undergarments into the right chute and climbed into the now steamy shower.

'A quick rinse in here,' Kim thought to herself as the water cascaded over her washing away the grime. 'And I think I'll spend the rest of the night in that Jacuzzi.'

Several feet away in a crawl space above Kim's closet, Shego began to stretch her muscles, preparing for the right moment to strike. As Kim sighed and stuck her face in the shower's spray, a small smile crept across Shego's face.

To be continued…

-GL-

A/N- Well folks, I'm still alive and back with an update. Hopefully you good people are still reading this, and hopefully you like it. A couple things…Kendra called Mr. Terrific Michael, and his real name is Michael Holt, just in case that confused anyone not familiar with the character. And thanks to Cylon One for his help, and as always my friend Classic Cowboy for the support.

Next time…. Shego and Kim get physical with each other…. will Ron and Courtney?

-R


	18. Dates Pt Two

Chapter 18

"You know what's kind of funny? Maybe even a little bit strange." Ron asked Courtney as the two walked hand in hand down the moderately crowded sidewalk.

"What's that?" Courtney asked, looking up at Ron.

"Well, I've been smacking down the forces of evil since I was like, oh I dunno, fourteen or so." Ron started. "And now, when I engage some sort of villain, I don't really worry for my own safety, or whether or not I'm going to totally screw up. Which by the way, used to be my biggest concern."

"What about keeping your pants on?"

"A close second my dear." Ron smiled. "Anyways. Now it's a matter of how I'm going to defeat my foe, and how long it's going to take. Not to sound cocky, but I'm fairly confident in my abilities."

"As well you should be." Courtney smiled, giving Ron's hand a squeeze. "But what are you getting at?"

"Well, take tonight for instance. As I stood at the door of the headquarters of the famed Justice Society, and was led inside, and made small talk with Mr. Terrific, a man many would die to talk to for even a minute, I remained calm. But as soon as you sauntered down the stairs in that…amazing outfit, my heart worked its way into my throat, and my brain all but shut down."

"And now," Ron continued. "As I walk down the street, with the best girl I've ever met, I can't help but be slightly nervous, and wonder how I'm going to screw this up. Because I've never been good with girls, like, at all. Ever."

"And you can't help but appreciate the irony." Courtney observed. "You do something on a daily basis that the majority of the population could never do, and you do it with confidence and ease. Yet something that you feel comes as second nature to most guys, you feel insecure about it and have a tough time with it."

"Yeah, pretty much."

"Well don't you think the fact that you're taking me to dinner and then back to your apartment is evidence that you have a pretty good idea of what you are doing?"

"I guess so, but…"

"No buts." Courtney said, stopping in the sidewalk and turning to face Ron. "You aren't the same person you used to be. You aren't going to mess this up. That's not how you work anymore. You don't let the bad guy get away anymore; you don't jump out the window without your ring. And you sure as hell don't say something stupid to send me running back to the mansion crying. Especially not that last part, because in case you haven't noticed, I'm fairly fond of you."

"I'm fond of you too." Ron smiled, leaning over and giving Courtney a loving kiss. "And that's probably one of the nicest things anyone has ever said to me."

"Well get used to it." Courtney smiled, as they turned and continued on their way. "I plan on having a lot of time to say nice things to you."

"Me too." Ron agreed. "Hopefully the next compliment is something about my taste in Chinese restaurants. It's right up around the corner."

"Great, I'm starving. Of course you know all bets are off if I ever find out that you've been hooking up with Wonder Woman in the Watchtower."

"Oh I know. Trust me, you wont find out."

Ron's laughter turned to a yelp as Courtney slugged him in the arm.

-GL-

The sound of soft classical music drifted from Kim Possibles bathroom out into the living room. Shego smiled as she peered out the closet door. The music would cover any sound Shego might make, though she planned on making none. From her vantage point she could make out the top of Kim's head, which was angled backwards against the side of the tub.

Shego waited about a minute before she made a quick dash out of the closet to the front of the bed. From there she made another quick move to the outside of the bathroom door. From her new vantage point she peered through the crack by the hinges and confirmed Kim's position. Her head laid back against the tub, eyes closed, lost in the music and whatever thoughts ran through her head.

'Easier then I thought.' Shego thought to herself as she got down on her belly and snake crawled her way into the bathroom.

Kim sighed as the massaging jets of the Jacuzzi blasted the small of her back and her shoulders. Sitting in the tub with the hot water drawn just below her chin while staring at the back of her eyelids seemed to make everything melt away. Of course the relief was only temporary, as her thoughts drifted back to everything.

Ron. What was it about him, Kim thought. Why did seeing him with Courtney invoke such feelings?

'Sure I love him.' Kim shifted her weight and slapped at the water with her right hand. 'But like that? Jealousy? It wouldn't be the first time I've been accused of that feeling. But what am I even jealous of? Courtney for dating Ron? Ron for getting involved in a relationship while I'm still single? Or maybe its just because he's out having a blast and I'm home alone on a Friday.'

'Only one thing's for certain,' Kim concluded. 'I have to act more civil, even nicer. Ron's my best friend regardless of anything else. He deserves to be happy. Maybe I should see if Courtney wants to go shopping, or hit up a spa for a massage.'

Kim smiled inwardly at the thought of a nice professional massage. She imagined having someone work all the kinks out of her back and neck.

'I can almost feel the hands on my shoulders', Kim thought. Suddenly she realized she could feel the hands on her shoulders. Her eyes snapped open just as she was forced under water.

-GL-

"So do you actually live here, or is it just where you keep your stuff?"

"What do you mean?" Ron asked, slightly confused.

"This might be the cleanest dwelling I've ever seen in my life." Courtney remarked as she looked around. "Not that I expected you to be living in filth, but this is amazing."

"Well, I had a little help making it pretty." Ron said, tapping his ring with his left index finger.

"Using your powers for your own personal cleanliness." Courtney smiled. "You better hope I don't tell, I think they can revoke your super hero card for that."

"We get cards?" Ron asked, drawing a laugh from Courtney.

"Well maybe you big shot Justice Leaguers don't have to carry credentials, but us small timers do."

"Small timers?" Ron scoffed. "From what I understand your outfit is the whole reason the JLA was formed back in the day."

"Inspirational we may be, but we don't live on the moon."

"So I'll bring you a moon rock next time I go up." Ron laughed. "Hey, have you been up there since we got it all done?"

"I have not."

"You should come up next time I have monitor duty, it's pretty slick." Ron said as he made his way over to the entertainment center. "Did you bring the movie?"

Courtney reached into her bag and tossed Ron a DVD case.

"No complaints now. Your restaurant, my movie."

"I know, I know." Ron caught the DVD and looked it. "Aw, c'mon Court. Kate and Leopold? If there is a time traveling hunk in a movie, I want it to be the Terminator."

"Hush." Courtney commanded as she kicked her boots off towards the door. "Keep an open mind and you might like it."

"A villain said that to me once about torture. Turned out he was wrong."

"Haw, haw."

"The bedroom and bathroom are in the back if you want to change in to those." Ron said, noticing the sweatpants Courtney had produced from her bag.

"That's ok. The skirt has its benefits." Courtney responded as she slid the sweats on under the skirt. She then reached around and unzipped the skirt, letting it fall the ground before kicking it over to her boots. "Little early in the night for that kind of show anyway."

"I…well…yeah let's get this night moving along then!" Ron smiled as he closed the distance between them. He took the girl in his arms, twirling around and down onto the couch in one motion. Courtney landed on top, and gave Ron a long kiss before rolling off to face the television. Ron adjusted himself accordingly and wrapped his arm around her midsection, pulling her as close as he could. With a green flash from his ring, the lights were turned off, and the play button was pushed on the DVD player.

"This movie sucks." Ron whispered, as the FBI warning appeared on the screen.

Courtney rolled her eyes as she elbowed him in the ribs.

-GL-

The water rushed into Kim's mouth before she could snap it shut, and the soapy water stung at her eyes. She gripped at the wrists holding her down, trying desperately to break their grasp, but to no avail. Flailing about wildly trying to slip free had roughly the same effect.

Feeling herself succumbing to the lack of oxygen, Kim tried her final play. She slid down slightly into the tub, knowing that whomever held her down would have to lean forward to maintain their grip. After the slide, Kim brought her knee out of the water and over her head, hoping it would make contact with something.

It did. A thud against Kim's knee coincided with a slight release of the grip on her shoulders. It was enough for Kim to wriggle free and burst out of the water, gasping for air and working her way to the other side of the Jacuzzi in one motion. Coughing and spitting up water she turned to face her assailant.

"Shego?" Kim rasped. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Apparently forgetting how damn flexible you are." Shego said wryly, rubbing at her forehead. Then she stopped and rose to her feet, igniting her hands with green fire as she did so. "Other then that I was just dropping by to, you know…kill you."

"Well that's nice. It couldn't have waited until after I was clean and dressed?"

"Places to go, people to see."

"Of course." Kim smiled. As the pleasantries ended Kim lashed out with her foot again, this time at the water in the Jacuzzi. As the spray soaked Shego, Kim grabbed the back of the tub and neatly flipped out, grabbing her towel off the rack as she did so.

"Cute" Shego remarked as she charged at Kim. Before she could get within striking distance though a hard snap of a towel caught her in the eye, causing her to stop and yelp.

Shego rubbed at the eye as Kim recoiled her cotton weapon, unwrapping it from its tight coil, and then wrapping it around her body all in one motion.

Once the towel was secure Kim charged at Shego. She led with her right, which Shego easily blocked, as Kim easily blocked Shego's counter. The two continued their stalemate dance across the tile of the bathroom floor.

Shego suddenly found herself backed up against the glass door of Kim's shower. Shego ducked Kim's punch, causing her fist instead to hit the glass with a thud. In a fluid motion Shego grabbed the wrist and twisted Kim's arm around her back. Now behind Kim, Shego grabbed the back of the teen's head and smashed it hard into the glass door.

Kim yelped as her head hit the door, and as Shego pulled her head away and again smashed it into the glass, Kim found herself longing for a nice soft shower curtain.

Shego pulled her head back for a third bashing, but this time Kim managed to slip her feet around Shego's ankles. This time when Shego pulled back, she found herself pulling all of Kim's weight, and it sent them both crashing awkwardly to the ground.

Kim recovered first, rolling on top of Shego, straddling her midsection. She angrily palmed the villains face and pounded her head against the tile floor.

"How's it feel, you crazy b-yeow!" Kim's insult was cut short as a burst of green plasma singed her side, forcing her to roll off of Shego and spring to her feet.

"You just singed my favorite towel." Kim remarked. Indeed, the fluffy blue towel now had a large hole in it.

"You won't be needing towels where you're going Princess." Shego growled as she leapt at Kim, tackling the Titan.

-GL-

Courtney straddled Ron, looking down at him with a playful smirk. Ron returned the smile, and Courtney could feel it widen as she leaned down and pressed her lips to his.

The muted television cast the only light on the young lovers. The movie, long since ignored, continued to play. Ron couldn't think of a better way to watch Kate and Leopold.

Courtney ran one hand through Ron's blonde hair and used the other to unbutton his shirt. Once that task was accomplished she used both hands to explore Ron's upper body. Similarly, Ron's hands were hard at work mapping out the terrain of Courtney's back and posterior.

Courtney suddenly caught her breath in her throat as her right hand discovered an anomaly on Ron's side. She broke their kiss and looked at him worriedly, her hand still fingering the four raised scars just above Ron's rib cage, each one roughly three inches long.

"Shego, age fourteen." Ron said softly, noticing the quizzical look Courtney was giving him. "I was, well…I was running by her waving my arms in the air, and she caught me pretty good."

"Aw, my poor wounded distraction." Courtney cooed, kissing her fingertips and running them across the scars.

Ron smiled and pulled her back down towards her, giving her a long kiss while working his hands under her shirt and gently up her back.

"If you're trying to find a scar to tease me about, you won't find any there." Courtney whispered, gently nibbling on Ron's earlobe.

"Who said anything about looking for scars?" Ron replied as his hands reached their destination, and unclasped Courtney's bra with surprising dexterity.

"Smooth." She smiled as she pulled away from Ron and lifted her shirt over her head, tossing it off to the side. She almost laughed at Ron's now dopey grin as she pulled her bra off and tossed it in the general direction of the shirt.

Courtney remained upright as she began slowly grinding on Ron's pelvic region. Ron smiled up at her while his hands began a new exploration of Courtney's front.

-GL-

"Always mind your surroundings."

In her mind Kim could hear Nightwing giving her that piece of advice during one of their training sessions. He had said it was one of the first pieces of advice the Batman had given him years ago, and always proved useful. Knowing your environment, and what could be used as a weapon, for or against you, was one of the most important parts of any battle. She looked forward to telling Nightwing how she had used his teachings.

Kim was backpedaling, but she was not in retreat. She blocked a jab from Shego, and ducked a roundhouse kick, all while moving backwards. Finally she was right where she wanted to be; in front of her dresser. The dresser was roughly six feet long, and stood about four feet high. It had two columns of drawers, with three drawers to each column.

'Time to kill two birds with one stone' Kim thought to herself, smiling inwardly.

Shego moved to attack again as Kim slid herself into position. This time when Shego jabbed, Kim grabbed her by the wrist with her left hand and pulled her towards her. At the same time, she hooked the bottom dresser drawer with her foot, yanking it open.

Shego's shins cracked the open drawer, knocking her off balance. Still holding her wrist, Kim pulled Shego quickly downwards. With her free hand she jerked open the top drawer of the next row.

Shego yelped as her head crashed into the solid oak drawer, blood spilling from a gash in her forehead.

Kim smiled as she sidestepped her foe and reached into her top drawer, snatching out a light blue tank top and a pair of underwear. She frowned when she realized she had grabbed a black thong Not exactly an ideal pair of underwear for combat, but there was no time to be picky, for Shego was already starting to pick herself up off the ground.

Kim shimmied into the thong just as Shego turned to face her. She ignited her hands and leapt at Kim. Kim was able to fall backwards with the tackle, using Shego's momentum, and a well placed knee to the midsection to throw her off.

Kim grimaced though as she rolled over and pushed herself up from the ground. She looked down at her bare arms to find four slashes on each one. Blood flowed freely from each cut, and her upper arms burned like someone had held them to a fire.

Ignoring the pain, Kim reached down to the bottom drawer and pulled out a pair of red stretchy workout pants. She literally jumped into them, and turned to face Shego's next attack, which the villainess was happy to provide. Kim tucked the tank top she was holding into the waistband of her newly donned pants, and took a fighting stance.

Shego drew herself close, but didn't charge this time.

"No blind charge this time Shego?" Kim mocked. "I was kind of enjoying tossing you about like a rag doll."

"All that effort just to try and get dressed." Shego smirked. "You could have just asked, I would have let you put clothes on. I would want to cover that pathetic body up if it were mine."

"Oh please, I saw you checking this 'pathetic' body out in the bathroom." Kim replied. "It's alright though, I'm used to jealous glances from my days in the cheerleader locker room."

"Jealous she says!" Shego scoffed as the two began circling each other. "What would I have to be jealous of, other then saving money on bras? When was the last time you went up a cup size Kimmie?"

"Cute." Kim glowered, casting a brief self-conscience glance at her chest. "But I was thinking more along the lines of the obvious weight difference. I mean you're only what, five or six years older then me and about the same height? Yet you probably outweigh me by at least thirty pounds. You obviously aren't as trim as I am, and I can see that bugs you, as it should."

"You little slut." Shego growled, moving in closer. "In our line of work, I believe they call it a weight advantage."

Shego led with a right, which Kim easily blocked, but the left jab to the gut was unexpected, and found its mark easily. Kim gasped as the air rushed out of her lungs. Shego smiled and backhanded Kim across the face, sending the teen stumbling backwards.

Shego took another step forward, but Kim had recovered slightly. She pulled at the towel, yanking it off and wrapping into a tight whip in one motion. Then, with a flick of her wrist, she snapped it. The end of the towel connected with the cut on Shego's forehead.

Shego yelped as more blood gushed from the wound. Luckily for her the blood stayed out of her eyes, allowing her to see Kim's next attack coming. She caught the towel with her right hand, igniting it with a burst of green flame as she did so. Kim pulled her hand away from the flaming towel, blowing at her palm, which was now bright red.

"See what I mean?" Shego said smiling, pointing at Kim's bare chest. "You should take some money from Titans petty cash and get those improved on."

"They're fine the way they are." Kim said defensively. "They get the job done anyways."

Shego was about to retort but Kim charged at her, fist cocked. Shego prepared a counter and swung but connected with nothing but air as Kim ducked and rolled by her.

As Kim went into her roll she pulled the tank top from her waistband and slipped it over her head. She came out of her roll, standing and pulling the tank top down in one swift motion, then wheeled to face Shego. Unfortunately Shego was right there on top of her, and clamped her gloved hand around her throat.

"Teen hero killed while getting dressed in the middle of the battle." Shego said softly, a smile spreading across her lips. "The worst part of it is, those colors look stupid together."

Kim knew Shego was right, but that was the least of her concerns. Not only was Shego's vise like grip squeezing the air out of her windpipe, she was also slowly igniting her hand.

"Kim Possible." Shego began, her smile full now. "Burn victim, choking victim, and fashion victim. What an interesting eulogy that will be."

-GL-

Ron cradled Courtney gently in his arms as he carried her the short distance from the living room couch to his bedroom. They remained locked in a passionate kiss for the duration of the journey, broken only when Ron turned sideways to ease through the bedroom door.

"Shego again?" Courtney asked softly, rubbing her hand over four scratch marks on Ron's right shoulder blade.

"No, actually those are from…" Ron trailed off, blushing slightly.

"From what?"

"I fell on a rake."

Courtney stifled a laugh and put on a serious expression. She deepened her voice slightly when she spoke and held her hands to her head slightly above her ears, balled into fists except for her index fingers, which were pointed upwards.

"You must always be prepared Green Lantern. Not every villain will be wearing a costume or carrying a gun."

Ron laughed out loud as Courtney continued to stare hard and expressionless at him.

"If only Batman had been around to give me leaf raking advice." Ron lamented.

"Leaves are a superstitious and cowardly lot." Courtney stated, before she too burst into laughter.

Ron continued to laugh as he lowered Courtney gently to the bed. Once down she wrapped her legs around Ron's waist and pulled him down on top of her. They engaged in another long kiss, which they broke to move away from the edge of the bed to a more comfortable position.

"You know", Courtney said, grabbing a pillow and sliding it behind her head. "I kind of feel like a lousy hero now. I don't have any cool scars to show off."

"Two things." Ron began. He was straddling her, and rose up to look down at her seriously. "First off, I would say not having any scars makes you a better hero. Most of my scars are due to my own stupidity."

"Don't sell yourself short, you couldn't have known that rake was loaded."

Ron shook his head and laughed.

"The second thing honey?"

"Your body's to beautiful to get scarred up."

Courtney blushed slightly as she felt her heart began melt inside her chest. She reached up with both hands and cupped his face gently. She held his gaze for what seemed like an eternity, staring into his deep brown eyes.

"Flattery, Mr. Stoppable will get you everywhere." When she finally spoke it was as soft as a whisper.

Ron smiled as he leaned down and gently kissed Courtney's belly. Slowly he worked his way up to her mouth, delivering kisses the entire way, lingering at some choice locations. Courtney closed her eyes and smiled, she felt emotions and feelings inside of her she had never imagined. When his lips finally reached her, she returned the kiss fully, barely able to contain her building excitement.

She worked her hands quickly down to Ron's waist. She fumbled slightly with his belt buckle, but before long it was unclasped. Ron rolled off of her and onto his side, pulling her with him. The new position allowed Courtney to slide off Ron's pants, which she tossed haphazardly onto the floor. A voice in the back of her mind told her to look and see if Ron's boxer shorts and tiny green lanterns on them, but she ignored it and kept her eyes locked with Ron's.

Ron looked at her lovingly as he slid Courtney sweats off, tossing them in the general direction of his own pants. He leaned over and kissed her again as he rubbed her inner thigh gently before moving it in farther, and beneath her underwear.

Courtney leaned her head back and moaned, gripping the bed sheets with one hand and Ron's arm with the other. She squeezed it tight before she moved her hand away, guiding it towards Ron's lower regions. She smiled to herself when she found her destination and heard Ron take a sharp breath as she slid her hand underneath underwear that may or may not have green lanterns on them.

The young lovers spent the next half an hour kissing and exploring each other's bodies. Finally Ron rolled on top of Courtney, whose heart was beating faster then it ever had in her life.

"Ron." She whispered so softly Ron had to lean in close to hear her. "I…I've never done this before."

To her slight surprise Ron's face betrayed no hint of emotion other then the loving look that had been there before. If he was disappointed or excited by this revelation, he didn't show it.

"If you don't want to I understand."

"No, I do." She said quickly. "I just…I thought you should know."

Ron smiled softly and looked into her eyes. She wasn't really sure why she felt compelled to tell him, especially now that it had gotten this far. But looking into Ron's eyes she knew why, and she felt that Ron understood. When he spoke, it confirmed her feelings.

"I love you Courtney."

"I love you too Ron." She replied, her heart melting the rest of the way.

-GL-

Kim brought her left hand up, slamming it hard into the back of Shego's elbow. Shego winced at the blow, and Kim felt the grip on her throat loosen slightly. Using the opening, she used her right hand to strike at Shego's elbow from the other direction, knocking the hand away from her neck.

Kim followed with a swift sidekick to Shego's midsection, a blow that sent her crashing to the floor several feet away. Kim took a few steps back sucking in generous gulps of air and rubbing at her throat. When she pulled her hand away it was covered in blood.

She touched the front of her throat again and winced. When she had knocked Shego's hand out of the way her claw like nails had left a large gash.

'Not deep enough to bleed out, but it still hurts.' Kim mentally assessed her new wound. 'Still better then having the life choked out of me.'

Kim turned to face Shego who was back on her feet and moving towards her. She fired another sidekick at her, but this time Shego blocked it. Kim easily blocked the counter, and just like that, the battle was renewed.

The two fighters moved about Kim's quarters, exchanging blows, blocks and counters. The entire time neither woman's eyes left the others, each of them shooting the other a glare that was just as lethal as any punch of kick being thrown.

Moving around the room, Kim felt her back against the open door of her walk in closet. The door was a heavy wood and Kim knew she could use it to her advantage.

She blocked another blow from Shego, but allowed the next one, a jab to the gut, to pass through her defenses. She doubled over slightly; glancing up to see Shego cock back and ignite her fist, ready to deliver the killing blow.

As Shego's right fist flew forward, Kim let her body go limp and fall to the floor. She moved just in time as Shego's punch blasted through the spot on the door where Kim's head should have been.

Shego howled in pain as her hand went crashing through the thick door. She could feel the fingers of her glove filling with blood, and knew at least one finger was broken, maybe more. She saw Kim scrambling to her feet on the other side of the door, and tried to pull her hand out quickly, knowing she was a sitting duck.

Kim rolled around to the other side of the door and jumped to her feet before Shego could dislodge herself from the door. She grabbed the stuck appendage and yanked hard. The dull thud of Shego's body slamming against the door on the other side pleased Kim a little more then it probably should have. Nevertheless, Kim pulled again, and again, rewarded each time with the satisfying thud.

She was about to pull again when Shego suddenly twisted her hand around and snatched Kim by the forearm.

"Crap in a hat."

It was Kim's turn now to have her body banged against the door. Three times Kim's body bounced off the door before Shego lost her balance on the other side. Shego fell backwards in mid pull, the wood splinters of the door tearing at her uniform, leaving several new scratches on the exposed part of her arm.

On the other side of the door, Kim bounced off the barrier and crashed to the ground with a thud. She groaned and reached a hand to her head, where a large lump was already forming. She rolled over onto her side to face Shego, wincing as she did so.

Shego looked no better then Kim did. A nice lump had formed on her head as well, in about the same spot as Kim's only on the opposite side. Shego was lying on her back breathing heavily and pulling at the glove on her right hand.

When Shego finally got the glove off, the sight of her hand almost made Kim sick. The entire hand was covered in blood, and when Shego gingerly flexed it, only her index finger and thumb moved. The other three fingers were black and blue, and quite mangled.

"Remind me…aheh…remind me to close the closet door next time." Shego said with a pained chuckle.

Kim wrinkled her brow in confusion before she turned and looked in the closet. From her vantage point she could see the door to the crawl space hanging open, and a messenger bag she knew wasn't hers sitting on the floor.

"At least it wasn't the front door." Kim said, indicating the twelve-inch thick barricade that served as a front door to her quarters. Not only was the door soundproof, it was constructed of several elements foreign to earth. If a bomb went off in the hallway, Kim might her a thump. "You'd have broken every bone in your body punching that."

"How comforting." Shego replied, struggling to her feet.

Kim followed suit, and the two faced off again.

"You look like hell." Shego smirked.

"Look in a mirror lately?"

"I'll have plenty of time to heal up. You won't."

"What's this all about Shego?" Kim inquired, jumping up on the bed, bouncing once, and landing on the other side, where she had more room to maneuver. "This isn't really like you. Breaking in and trying to kill me, which by the way, I would love to know how you got past all of our security."

"I could tell you, but it would probably cost more then you make on a hero's salary." Shego said, moving in front of the bed, working her way over to the open area Kim now occupied. "I had to rob a bank just to pay for it."

"Right, anyways…" Kim rolled her eyes. "What I'm getting at is shouldn't you be somewhere with Drakken right now like, oh I dunno…jail?! Or at the very least, hatching some lame-o plan?"

"The Doctor and I have parted ways." Shego stated with what sounded to Kim like a touch of regret in her voice. "So I've gone back to good old fashioned mercenary work. I tried it for a bit after I left Team Go, but Drakken offered a steadier paycheck…kind of."

"Mercenary? So then who hired you?"

"No one. I figured I needed to make a name for myself again, and well…I pretty much hate you, so I figured I would kill two birds with one stone."

"That is such a lovely and well thought out plan." Kim said. "It seems a shame to ruin it by not dying."

"Well we'll just see about that princess." Shego smirked, firing a blast of green energy at Kim.

With a sigh Kim ducked underneath the energy blast and longed for simpler times.

-GL-

Courtney sighed with content as she lay with her head on Ron's chest. She had her arms wrapped around his torso, and at the moment she could care less that the one underneath him was going to sleep. She wracked her memory to try to find a moment in her life when she had been happier.

Courtney hadn't led a bad life, she had seen too much with the JSA to be that naive anymore. But she would be lying to herself if she said it had all been roses and smiles along the way. She smiled to herself as she thought of the moment that had eventually brought her here. Finding her step fathers cosmic converter belt and strapping it around her waist to become the new Star Spangled Kid had been nothing more then an attempt to get back at him for ruining her life.

She couldn't have imagined where that decision would have led her. Shortly after that initial stunt, she began to find she wasn't half bad at the superhero thing. And helping people that couldn't help themselves led Courtney to discover a lot about herself and her own life she never would have learned otherwise.

If she hadn't become Stargirl, she would probably still be at odds with her stepfather Pat. She loved Pat now, probably more then her biological father, whom she had learned was a total slime. She would never have evolved from the bratty, self involved fourteen year old who knew everything to the confident, caring seventeen year old, who was much wiser, but still had a lot to learn.

She would have never had the chance to carry on the legacy of not only Pat's old friend the Star Spangled Kid, but of Starman, the hero who had given Courtney her cosmic rod, a gesture that prompted her to change her code name from Star Spangled Kid to Stargirl.

She and Starman had clashed from the very first moment they met. At first he viewed her as an irresponsible child, and looking back on it, he was right. But two years later when Jack Knight decided to retire, he gladly handed his family legacy to Courtney; a moment that still fills her with pride.

And now she had just spent the most amazing night of her life with the most amazing young man she had ever met. She couldn't have written the night any better. He had taken her with love and confidence, easily removing any doubts or anxiety she had. It was that confidence that led Courtney to believe this wasn't Ron's first time, and she briefly wondered who had come before her. She pushed those thoughts aside though, no need to ruin the moment with something that irrelevant.

A gentle touch shook her from her thoughts. She craned her neck to look up at Ron, who was stroking her long blonde hair.

"What's on your mind honey?"

"You." Courtney smiled back.

"I'm also on your arm."

"It's fine." Courtney laughed, kissing his chest. Another moment or so passed before she looked back up at him. "Ron?"

"Yes?"

"Lets go flying."

"Flying?" Ron furrowed his brow.

"Yeah, flying." She said with a smile. "I've got to get home in like, forty five minutes, and I would love to go for a nice quiet flight around the city with you."

Ron regarded her for a moment, considering the request. She knew it probably sounded crazy to him. They both flew every day of the week, but for some reason a flight in the cool night air seemed like the perfect way to end the night.

"Well," Ron finally said. "If it's a flight the lady wants, it's a flight the lady gets."

Courtney smiled broadly and reached up and kissed him.

"I'll go get my stuff." She said excitedly, pulling her arm from underneath Ron, shaking the feeling back into it as she moved out the door and back into the living room.

Ron watched her leave before he stretched out and swung his legs over the side of the bed. He smiled as he poked through the mess of discarded clothes before finally finding his black boxers with the little green lanterns on them. He slid them on and scooped up Courtneys clothes, heading for the living room.

"Don't forget these." He said as he plopped the garments on the couch next to Courtney's bag.

"Thanks." Courtney replied, pulling her Stargirl top over her head. She stuffed all her clothes haphazardly into the tiny bag and zipped it shut. She strapped it on her back and sat down on the couch to put on and lace up her knee high black boots.

"If you don't mind me asking." Ron began. "Where did that costume come from? I seem to recall that bag containing only sweat pants and a crappy DVD."

"Oh, check it out. This is so cool." Courtney said happily, picking up her cosmic rod and turning it over so the bottom of the handle was facing them. She flicked a tiny switch and a lid popped open on the bottom of the rod. "Costume goes in there."

"No way." Ron said dismissively. "Your mask wouldn't even fit in there."

"Oh but it does." She replied. "It's Flash technology. Back in the day the Flashes used to keep their uniforms inside of rings they wore. Open up the ring and poof! Out comes a costume. Expands on contact with the air. Don't ask me how that works, but it's awesome. Of course the Flashes are quick enough to change before the darn thing hits the ground. I have to put mine on the old fashioned way once I take it out."

"Sweet." Ron said examining the tiny compartment. "How do you get it back in?"

"I don't, I just have hundreds of tiny costumes that I stuff in there all the time."

"Really?"

"No." Courtney laughed at the look of astonishment on Ron's face. "We have a machine at the mansion that takes all the air molecules or whatever out of them. It's in the laundry room."

"Wash, dry, shrink, stuff in rod." Ron smiled, handing Courtney the rod. "Crazy world we live in."

"Tell me about it. You ready?"

With a flash of green light Ron's Green Lantern uniform appeared on him.

"Yeah, I'm good to go."

"Show off." Courtney smiled, reaching up to kiss him before pulling on her mask.

The two made their way to the window, which Ron slid open.

"Ring, is the perimeter clear?"

_Perimeter check complete. All clear. _

"Ladies first." Lantern motioned as a construct step appeared in front of the window.

"Such a gentleman." Stargirl stated as she used the step and hoped out the window.

Lantern let himself out next and floated his way above the rooftops of the buildings. Stargirl was waiting for him, sitting cross-legged on her cosmic rod.

"Where to mi lady?" Lantern asked, forming a construct rod of his own to sit on.

"How about a nice moonlit flight over the bay?"

"Lead the way." Lantern smiled, reaching over and taking her hand. She held it tightly as the two took off, making their way over the city towards the bay.

-GL-

The flight so far had been spent in a comfortable silence. The two had drifted slowly through the city, holding hands the entire time, and speaking only to point something of humor or interest out.

They had reached Courtney's desired destination, the East River and its bay. A construct sofa appeared in front of her, bringing a smile to her face. Green Lantern flew up and settled into it, patting the area next to him. Stargirl joined him, leaning into him. Lantern responded by draping his arm around her, bringing her as close as he possibly could.

"Nice night." Stargirl commented. The night sky was as clear as it got in the city and the full moon hung high in the sky, casting a glow on the water below. She watched as a few boats ambled across the dark water, and in the distance a steady stream of traffic flowed across a bridge.

"You can drive for miles in Blue Valley before coming across a car at this time of night." Stargirl observed, referencing her hometown.

"Middleton wasn't that deserted at night, but nothing like this. I don't think I could live in this city if I couldn't fly."

"You should see L.A."

"Pass." Lantern smiled. "Oh look over here, that's where I earned my way into the Justice League."

Stargirl followed Lanterns gaze over to the giant T shaped tower that sat in the bay. She thought Titans Tower looked slightly out of place in the bay.

"Did they install a plaque to commemorate the event?"

"A statue actually."

"Uh huh." Stargirl smiled. "Does Kim like living there?"

"Who wouldn't?" Lantern scoffed. "Free room and board in one of the most high tech facilities on Earth? It makes my cozy little apartment look like a cardboard box."

"Don't you have a living quarters on the moon?"

"Yeah, and its amazing." Lantern said. "Wait until you see it. The thing about it is though…"

"Is it's on the moon." Stargirl finished.

"Yeah. It's a nice place to visit, but it's too far away."

"From what?"

"The good citizens I strive to protect." Lantern stuck out his chest, before adding, "And you, of course."

"Of course." Stargirl smiled and leaned up to kiss him but stopped when she realized he was looking past her at something. At the Tower.

"What is it?" Stargirl asked turning towards the structure. She scanned the tower, which was mostly dark except for the top floor, and a few windows specked across two levels in the middle. She assumed they were the living quarters, and one of those windows was what had the Lanterns attention.

"Someone having an indoor fireworks display?" She asked. The room in question had its lights on, but occasionally a bright green flash of light obscured the regular lighting.

"I don't think so." Lantern responded, and Stargirl felt the couch moving rapidly towards the tower. "I think I know what that is."

"It looks kind of like your rings energy." Stargirl commented

"No. Grab your rod."

Stargirl complied, grabbing her rod as the floating couch disappeared. She sighed inwardly at the realization that her perfect night had come to an end some twenty minutes before it was supposed to.

They arrived at the outside of the window and Stargirl gasped as she looked inside. She saw Kim Possible, looking like she had just gone ten rounds with Muhammad Ali. Then she saw where the green flashes of light were coming from. Another woman came into view, this one dressed in a green and black jumpsuit with long flowing black hair. The green clad woman didn't look quite as bad as Kim, but it was clear she had been on the receiving end of just as much punishment as she had been dishing out.

"Shego." Lantern hissed. Stargirl noticed the ice in his voice, which had also deepened slightly. Stargirl placed the name to some of Ron's stories from the Team Possible days. She also placed her as the hand behind the deep scars on Ron's side.

"Light me up babe." Lantern ordered. Stargirl complied, inwardly noting how easy he was able to go from sweet, lovable and goofy Ron, to the Green Lantern, the man who wielded the most powerful weapon in the universe.

Inside Kim's quarters, both Kim and Shego stopped their fight to cover their eyes with their hands. A flash of light as bright as the sunrise had flooded the room, temporarily blinding them.

"What the hell?" Shego yelled, suddenly noticing there was a draft in the room.

As quickly as the light had come it vanished. Kim and Shego turned towards the window to see the Green Lantern and Stargirl floating in through a neatly cut hole in the glass.

"Finally." Kim said softly, smiling as she heard Shego mutter an obscenity under her breath.

"Ladies." Lantern said, glaring at Shego.

Shego responded by glaring back and lighting up her good hand, raising it to fire an energy blast at him. Before she could fire though a bright yellow energy blast caught her square in the chest, knocking her across the room and into the closet.

Shego rose slowly to her feet and staggered towards the door. However, she found her exit blocked by a construct jail door. Sighing she turned around and picked up her messenger bag, gathering up her belongings.

On the other side of the room, Kim sat down roughly on the edge of the bed, holding her head in her hands.

"Are you ok?" Lantern and Stargirl asked at the same time, rushing over to Kim.

"Nothing two or three days worth of sleep won't fix." Kim smiled weakly.

"What happened? How did she get in here?" Stargirl asked. Kim regarded her with a strange look before she glanced at Lantern, who had his masked eyes fixated on Shego.

Stargirl considered the look for a moment and realized Kim had probably figured out who she was, assuming Ron hadn't told her. She noticed Kim's strange reaction to her when Ron had made the introduction at the pizza place, and now here she was, busting in to save the day with her boyfriend, who happened to be Kim's old sidekick and unconfirmed love interest.

She imagined herself in Kim's place. Having feelings for Ron, but then having him declare his love for someone else. It was a typical situation, Courtney mused, one that occurred hundreds of times a day across the country. The current part of this situation though, the part that involved tights and villains, was strictly unique to a very small group of people.

"…how she got in here." Kim was saying, and Stargirl put her own thoughts aside to listen to her, but not before making a decision to make a friend out of Kim, and to keep the lovey-dovey stuff with Ron to a minimum around her for a while.

"We need to get you to a doctor." Lantern cut in, interrupting Kim's story, and Stargirls thoughts. "Is there a medical bay on site?"

"Sick bay on level ten." Kim responded groggily. Now that she had sat down she was starting to feel very fatigued. "Nightwing is the field medic though, and he isn't here."

"Doctor Midnight should be home." Stargirl suggested.

"Good idea. Stars take Kim to the mansion and get her checked out. I'll take care of your playmate."

"Now hold on here buddy." Kim said, standing up quickly, a move she immediately regretted. "I don't know who you think you are but…"

"I'm with red on this one." Shego cut in from her closet prison. She had packed her bag and gathered her bearings, and was now ready to leave. "Nobody here is taking care of me, except for me."

Lantern smirked as Shego ignited her hand again.

"Light that hand up all you want lady, I assure you that…"

Lantern stopped in mid sentence as Shego easily slashed through the construct bars, causing them all to disappear in a flash of green light.

"…that you will be able to walk right through them. What the hell?" Lantern finished. Beside him Kim took a fighting stance and Courtney leveled her cosmic rod at Shego.

Shego formed a large green fireball in her hand and tossed it in the general direction of the three teens. Instinctively Lantern put up a shield in front of them, forgetting how easily Shego had sliced through his last construct.

The fireball struck the shield with a similar effect. It struck the shield, crackling with energy as it did so. The shield held for half a second before it exploded, knocking all three heroes backwards as it did so.

Shego laughed and ran towards them. She jumped on the bed, using it to spring board over the trio, who were already scrambling to their feet. Shego landed in front of the window and moved to the hole Green Lantern and Stargirl had used for an entrance.

"Well princess, I know when the odds are no longer in my favor. So as much as I would love to stay and rip your heart out, I'm going to have to leave and do it another way."

Kim and Stargirl both started for her, but Shego just waved and jumped out the window. They both gasped and ran towards the window, watching as Shego streaked away using tiny boot jets and glider wings to make her escape.

"That was weird." Stargirl muttered, looking back at GL, who was looking at his ring with a look of confusion.

"That's never happened before." He muttered under his breath. He then looked up at Stargirl. "What the hell was that? Are you alright?"

"Uh, I'm fine." Stargirl responded, shooting GL a glance.

"Kim!" Lantern exclaimed, catching Stargirls look. "We need to get you to the Doc."

"We aren't done yet." Kim replied calmly, trying not to let him see how much it hurt to see that she was behind Courtney on the priorities list. Noticing Lanterns confused look she sighed and added, "She said something about ripping my heart out another way."

Green Lantern stared at her blankly for a moment, and Kim almost smiled as she saw a glimpse of the Ron she had grown up with.

"She's going after you."

"Me?" Lantern asked.

"Him?" Stargirl said, just as confused.

"You." Kim stated again. "Shego wouldn't have come here without a contingency plan in case something went wrong trying to get to me. To rip my heart out would be to strike at my…loved ones. Which, I assume means you."

"Me?"

"Ron!" Kim and Stargirl yelled in unison.

"Oh!" Lantern exclaimed. "Damn. I'll intercept her before she gets to my place. I really don't want to have another apartment destroyed. You two get to the Doc."

"I don't think so hotshot." Kim said sternly. "This is my fight, I'm not letting you finish it. You may be the big time hero here now, but Shego is my responsibility. And in case you didn't notice, your ring wasn't exactly stopping her dead in her tracks."

Lantern held Kim's gaze for a moment before he finally sighed and turned away. He knew better then to argue with Kim, especially on matters of world saving. But he didn't have to like it.

"Fine. Have it your way." He said, floating out the window. "Let's go."

Lantern turned away from them and shot off in a streak of green light.

"Well then." Stargirl said after a moment of silence. "This is delightfully awkward."

Kim smirked and followed Stargirl to the window. She took the blondes outstretched hand and gripped it tightly. She felt her breath catch in her throat as they took off with a slight jerk.

The night air cut into Kim's wounds like knives. She bit her bottom lip and blocked out the pain. With any luck this next portion of the battle would be swift, and she could get the medial care she had refused, but so desperately needed.

-GL-

Shego zipped through the city, weaving in and out of buildings as she made her way towards her destination. It disappointed her that she had to go to her backup plan, but it was something she had prepared for. When your plan called for killing a hero in a tower full of other heroes, it was a good bet that something could go wrong.

Green Lantern showing up had been a surprise though. Shego expected one of the other Titans to maybe stumble in, but not the Green Lantern. She hoped Lantern had decided chasing her away would be enough. If he followed her to Stoppalbes place it could seriously hinder her new plan. Shego didn't like to admit it often, but she knew Green Lantern was out of her league.

She began to wonder if that little exchange she had witnessed between Possible and Lantern the other day had anything to do with him showing up.

"Hi. I don't think we've been properly introduced."

The voice shook Shego from her thoughts and startled her slightly. When she looked to her left she saw Green Lantern casually floating along side her.

"I'm Green Lantern. You must be Shego. I wish I could say it's a pleasure."

"I know who you are." Shego spat as she increased her speed, hoping to put some distance between the two. Unfortunately the Green Lantern matched her speed and easily caught back up to her.

"Once again my reputation precedes me." Lantern said boastfully. "That's a nifty glider setup you have there. I'm no Wilbur Wright, but I bet those wings are pretty crucial to controlling where those boot jets take you."

Shego's eyes went wide as two construct pairs of scissors appeared on either side of her. They easily began cutting through the material, and Shego could feel herself losing control.

"Are you crazy? What are you doing?"

"Call it a science experiment." Lantern shrugged. "The effects of wingless flying in an uncontrolled environment."

"You'll kill me you idiot!"

"Interesting hypothesis." Lantern mused as the scissors finished cutting. "Lets test it."

Shego cried out involuntarily as she dove towards the ground. She quickly cut the boot jets, which were only speeding up her descent at this point. She was still in a freefall though and was desperately rooting through her bag for a grapnel. Before she could grab it though she slammed into something hard in the middle of the air. She then continued her fall, but now it was more controlled. She looked around and realized she was in a giant green slide that had appeared out of nowhere.

The slide spiraled downwards and deposited her roughly on the rooftop of a small one-story building. Shego rolled across the roof for a couple feet before finally settling on her back at the green and black boots of the Green Lantern.

Lantern reached down and grabbed Shego by the front of her jumpsuit and hoisted her into the air. She was surprised at his strength, and she absently wondered how much his ring augmented said strength.

"Looks like your theory was wrong." Lantern said coldly, lifting Shego high enough that the white lenses of his eye mask were even with Shego's eyes. "Though part of me thinks I should have let you become a stain on the sidewalk for what you tried to pull tonight."

"Please." Shego rolled her eyes as she brought her feet up and planted them on GL's stomach. She pushed off, executing a back flip as she did so, leaving Green Lantern holding nothing but a couple pieces of torn fabric.

"If any of you and your spandex wearing pals had the stones for that kind of stuff, threats like that might actually scare me."

Lantern smirked and quickly fired a green energy blast at her. Shego dodged easily and returned fire with a blast of her own. Lantern seemed to be expecting this, and tossed a green ball into the path of Shego's blast. The blast and ball collided in mid air, vanishing with a crackle as they touched.

Lantern seemed baffled by this occurrence, and Shego could see his brow furrowing underneath her mask .She found it odd to, but at the moment it was more a source of hope then of curiosity. If her energy blasts somehow counteracted the energy from the Green Lanterns ring, they were back on a level playing field.

Shego smiled as she ignited her green flame around her good hand. She might still get to kill Stoppable and wreck Kimmies life.

-GL-

"Down there!" Kim pointed to a rooftop several meters below them. Her and Stargirl had lost track of Green Lantern almost as soon as they entered the city from the bay. They set out on the most direct route to Ron's apartment hoping they would catch up to them before Shego actually reached the apartment.

"I see it." Stargirl replied and she took them into a dive straight for the rooftop. "Where can I set you down?"

"Right on top of Shego if you can."

"I think I can oblige." Stargirl smiled. As they approached the roof she could clearly see who was who. Lantern and Shego were engaged in what she assumed was some sort of hand to hand combat. Shego was slicing away with her flaming green hand, but Lantern was dodging every blow.

Stargirl found it odd, but when she looked closer she could see that Lantern had extended a green aura around himself. Whenever Shego slashed at him she had to go through the green force field first. Oddly enough, whenever her hand entered the field, the fire around her hand vanished.

"On drop?" Stargirl asked Kim as she adjusted her heading so that she came in behind Shego.

Kim nodded as she tensed her muscles and prepared for her attack. It would be good night Kimmie if she missed.

"Drop."

Stargirl swung her arm forward and released her passenger. Kim pulled herself into a tightly coiled ball upon release and sailed quickly through the air. She pulled out of the ball right behind Shego, just in time to drive both her feet hard into the small of Shego's back.

Lantern, having seen the attack coming, was easily able to sidestep the sprawling villain. Meanwhile, Kim ricocheted off Shego's back and landed neatly on her feet, staggering only slightly when she landed.

Stargirl landed gently on the roof behind her. Ron had always spoken highly of Kim's abilities, and she could see they weren't exaggerated. Stargirl was always impressed with someone who fought the good fight with nothing more then his or her natural abilities. Even more impressive was the fact that Kim had twice lost consciousness on the flight over. They were brief lapses, but Stargirl knew Kim was in no shape for a prolonged fight.

"It's over Shego." Kim said matter of factly.

"For you maybe." Shego rasped, pulling herself to her feet. She closed the distance between her and Kim and settled into a combat stance. Kim did the same, both of them seemingly ignoring Green Lantern and Stargirl.

"And they say its guys that are always doing the macho thing." Lantern sighed, crossing his arms.

Kim and Shego circled each other for a moment before Shego finally launched herself into a flying kick, her boot online with Kim's head. Kim prepared her block, but didn't get a chance to use it as Shego was blasted out of the air by a bright yellow blast of energy.

Kim and Lantern both turned wide-eyed to Stargirl, who was lowering her cosmic rod. The end still glowed brightly from the recently fired blast.

"What?" She said defensively. "Like this hasn't gone on long enough."

"That's my girl." Lantern said with a smile. He looked over to Shego, who was sprawled across the roof. She stirred slightly, and then went limp.

Kim glanced at Shego then back to Stargirl. She gave the blonde a warm smile and finally gave into the darkness that had been creeping in at the edges of her vision.

The last thing she felt were Lanterns strong arms catching her before she hit the roof.

-GL-

Next time-Bonnie and Monique continue with their plans to hook Kim up. Green Lantern puts his detective hat on and works on solving a mystery that will change everything in regards to a certain character. Oh yeah, you'll find out how Kim is doing after her brutal battle.

A/N-Well gang there is a nice long chapter for those of you that have stuck around. Without checking I'm fairly certain this is the longest chapter so far. Hope everyone enjoyed it, thanks to the usual suspects you know who you are. Feel free to review folks.

-R


	19. Dates Pt Three

Chapter 19

Kim's eyes snapped open and she sat up with a start. She immediately regretted the decision as every muscle in her body screamed out in agony. Apparently, Kim decided as she flopped back down onto the bed, her dream about a battle with Shego had actually taken place.

'Wait, a bed?' Kim thought to herself as her mind tried to fight through the thick haze it was in. She remembered a rooftop, and to her knowledge there had been no beds on the rooftop. She began to sit up again, but a strong but gentle hand on her shoulder halted her progress.

"Easy Miss Possible, lie back down, you need to rest."

Kim complied, taking in her surroundings as she did so. She was clearly in some sort of hospital room, though it was much larger and contained several beds and operating tables as well as several pieces of equipment. Kim recognized some of the devices from spending time at the hospital with her mother. There were several other machines that Kim had never seen in her life.

"How are you feeling?"

"I've felt better." Kim replied turning to face the voice that she assumed belonged to a doctor. As she took in the doctor, she wondered if perhaps she was dreaming after all.

The man standing over her bed holding a medical chart was dressed in a red tunic and a long black cape. He wore a brown utility belt and had large silver gauntlets on his forearms. A cowl was pulled away from his face and hung limply at the top of his cape. His hair was sloppy, suggesting the cowl had been worn recently, and he wore glasses with green lenses.

The man smiled at Kim's confused look. "I'm Doctor Pieter Cross, but usually when I'm in this outfit I go by Doctor Midnight."

"Dr. Midnight, of course." Kim said with a smile. "I'm sorry, I don't think I'm quite with it yet."

"Concussions will do that to you." Dr. Midnight said, hanging Kim's chart on a hook at the head of the bed. "You've had a pretty rough night. It's a good thing your friends got you here; you had lost a fair amount of blood as well."

"I got your coffee Doc, but we're out of sugar."

Kim turned her head to see Stargirl walking into the sickbay, carrying a mug of hot coffee. She was still wearing her uniform, but like Dr. Midnight she had her mask pulled off. Kim made a mental note to ask Ron if the Batman wandered around the Justice League's headquarters with his mask off.

"Kim! You're awake!" Courtney exclaimed as she hurried over and handed the Doctor his coffee. He took the mug and walked over to a desk where he sat down and began looking over some papers.

"We were worried there for awhile." Courtney said, her face showing more concern than Kim would have expected. "I've never seen Ron fly as fast as he did to you get here. He beat me back by a good five minutes."

Kim smiled and found the thought of Ron catching her in his arms and whisking her away to safety oddly comforting. It reminded her a bit of the old days, aside from a little bit of role reversal.

"Speaking of ol' Green Lightning," Kim began, glancing around the otherwise empty sickbay. "Where is he?"

"He's with Shego."

"Shego?" Kim cocked an eyebrow at the blonde hero, hoping her quizzical glance would hide any traces of the disappointment she felt.

"He wanted to be there when she woke up." Courtney replied, "To ask her questions and stuff." She quickly added.

Kim stared at Courtney with a strange expression on her face. Courtney shifted her weight from one foot to the other, holding Kim's stare the entire time, but feeling slightly uncomfortable at trying to explain to another girl why her boyfriend was at yet another girls bedside waiting for her to recover.

"He was here though…for quite awhile." Courtney finally said. "Once the Doc said you were out of danger he took off."

"What about you?" Kim said, a little colder then she intended.

"I figured I would stay with you." Courtney shrugged. "I thought it would be nice to see a familiar face when you woke up in case you were kinda out of it or something. Even if we aren't exactly friends, I just…I thought it would be nice."

An uneasy silence settled over the two. Kim looked away from Courtney and stared off into space. After a moment she turned back to Courtney, who was picking up her cosmic rod from a chair that had been pulled up near Kim's bed. She collapsed the rod and tucked it into her belt, then reached down and scooped up her mask, which was draped over the chairs armrest.

"I'll let you get some rest." Courtney said softly. "If you need anything, I'm extension fifteen on the phone. Night."

"Courtney, wait." Kim said, stopping her as she walked away. "I'm sorry."

"Sorry?" It was Courtney's turn to raise an eyebrow.

"Yeah, sorry." Kim smiled softly. "I wasn't exactly overly friendly with you the other day, and here you are waiting for me to wake up, after you saved my ass earlier and I'm being a bitch to you."

"You're not…"

"No, I am." Kim cut Courtney off. "I'm not usually like this, its just…I just don't know. This has been a weird couple of days. What with Shego attacking me like some sort of assassin and my best friend introducing me to his girlfriend, and trying to decide how I feel about that…"

"So you do have feelings for him." Courtney said, a touch of sadness on her face.

"Of course I do, I love him." Kim said, noting Courtney's reaction. "But as a friend, nothing more."

Courtney's face brightened, and Kim wished she felt as confident about her feelings as she sounded.

"I guess it's just kind of strange." Kim admitted, "As long as I've known Ron, which has been about forever, I've always been the only girl in his life. Heck, for the longest time I was the only other person in his life. I guess the thought of being replaced bummed me out."

"I don't want to replace you!" Courtney gasped. "I couldn't even if I wanted to, the way he talks about you and all the times you've had together, there is no way I could replace you."

"Well, I am a pretty bon-diggity gal." Kim grinned, doing her best Ron impersonation. The girls shared a hearty laugh before Kim spoke again, extending her hand as she did. "So, friends?"

"Of course." Courtney smiled, taking her hand.

"One more thing before you go." Kim said, her expression serious again. "Where exactly are Ron and Shego?"

Courtney smiled and simply pointed upwards.

"They are upstairs?"

"Oh yeah, waaaay upstairs."

-GL-

The Moon, JLA Headquarters.

"So I can talk to her now?" Green Lantern inquired, asking the question he had been asking since he arrived on the moon.

"Yes, finally." Dr. Sarah Charles said with an exasperated sigh. "In the future, when you haul me up to the moon to patch up some sort of super villain, could you at least let me do my job without pestering me every five minutes?"

"Sorry." Lantern said, turning away from the doctor to a row of monitors on the wall of the sickbay. One of the monitors displayed holding cell B, the room in which Shego was currently being detained. Shego was sprawled out on the bench, starting to stir slowly.

"See, she's shaking off the effects of the sedative I gave her." Dr. Charles said, peering over Lanterns shoulder. "By the time you get down there she'll be awake. Though I can't say for sure if she will be ready and willing to talk."

"C'mon Doc, I'm a personable guy, not to mention a great conversationalist." Lantern said with a smile, causing Dr. Charles to roll her eyes. Then seriously, Lantern added, "Thanks though Doctor. Sorry to drag you up here in the middle of the night, but this was serious."

"It usually is with you guys." Dr. Charles smiled. "But I've done all I can do here, so if you'll excuse me."

"Of course." Lantern said, motioning towards the door. "I'll walk you to the teleporter."

"Thank you." Dr. Charles said, following Green Lantern to the door, which he held open for her. As she walked out Lantern took one last glance into the sickbay. His eyes zeroed in on the medical waste container that sat near the sink. It was the kind of container that had a pedal on the bottom that opened the lid. A construct green shoe appeared on the pedal, flipping the lid open. A construct pair of tweezers followed, reaching into the container and pulling out a blood soaked piece of gauze. The tweezers flew across the room, depositing the gauze in GL's hand. He tucked the gauze inside his gauntlet and followed Dr. Charles out the door.

-GL-

Lantern covered the distance from the teleporter room to the holding cells with speed worthy of the Flash. Once he arrived he paused momentarily at the computer console that controlled the cameras, recording devices and various other systems the Justice League employed in their miniature detention center. After making sure that all scanning devices were turned on, he entered holding cell B.

Shego looked up at him from her spot on the bench and groaned. "I should have figured it would be you. I doubt Kimmies in any shape for a good old-fashioned interrogation. She looked a little rough didn't she?"

"How's your hand?" Lantern asked, ignoring Shego's question.

Shego frowned and glanced down at her right hand, which was encased in a cast. In addition to the cast she could feel stitches holding a would closed on her head, and she could hardly see out of her left eye, which was almost completely swollen shut.

"It's been better." She admitted softly, running her good hand over some of the creases in the brown jumpsuit she had been given. "So is this some top secret interrogation room in the basement of Titans Tower?"

"Not exactly." Lantern allowed himself a smile. "You're on the moon."

"The mah!?" Shego gasped, unable to get the word out.

"No, not the mah, the moon." Lantern replied. "And the moon is where you are going to remain until you've answered some questions."

"How the hell did I get on the moon?"

"Ok, I said answer some questions not ask them."

Shego glared at him for a couple of seconds before Lantern finally sighed and shook his head.

"I made a giant green bubble around you and flew you up here myself."

"Oh." Shego said, considering the scenario. "I suppose that makes sense."

"Why were you trying to kill Kim Possible tonight?"

"So much for our verbal foreplay." Shego feigned disappointment. "Well, if you must know, I actually had this great evening planned. You know the type, dinner, movie, and the company of a loved one. Well those plans ended up falling through, so I was like 'hey, I'll go kill Kim tonight!'"

"Cute." Lantern said. "But that doesn't sound like you does it Shego? I mean for the last few years you've been the hapless sidekick to an inept super villain, and all of a sudden you're a killer?"

"I mean, I get that you don't like Possible." Lantern continued, pacing the room, but keeping an eye on Shego the entire time. "You two have been locking horns since she was fourteen. And by locking horns I mean you've been getting your ass handed to you by Possible since she was fourteen."

"Your point?" Shego growled.

"Just trying to understand the whole "sidekick seeks revenge via murder angle. It doesn't seem like you."

Shego surprised GL by laughing out loud. When she was done she stood up and walked to Green Lantern, stopping inches from his face.

"What the hell do you know about me anyway?" Shego said softly, staring into Lanterns masked eyes. "You know what my rap sheet says, and you know whatever Kim's computer boy was able to dig up about my personal life. But I'm guessing there are some gaps in my file, particularly in the period of time after I left Team Go and before I joined Team Dipshit."

"So what's your point?"

"My point is that I wasn't just sunning myself on a beach in Miami for those couple years." Shego said, turning away from GL and returning to her bench. "I did a few contract killings, mainly in Europe. Now that I'm flying solo again, I figured I would get back into the mercenary business. And what better way to re-establish yourself then by knocking off Kim Possible?"

It was Shego's turn to be surprised as the Green Lantern burst out laughing, and had to use the wall to steady himself.

"You don't have to lie to me Shego." Lantern said finally. "We've got machines outside that can detect that kind of thing anyway. We both know what this is about."

"Do we now?"

"Of course. It's jealousy." Lantern made the statement as if it were proven fact. "It's obvious. Kim Possible, your arch-foe, has made the superhero big time. She's a member of the world famous Titans. And what about you? You don't even have a job with your third rate mad scientist!"

Lantern paused to take in Shego's reaction. She was mostly calm, but Lantern had enough experience with Shego to know the anger that was about to boil over.

"Let's face it Shego, you're third rate, and Kim's first rate. And that pisses you off to no end doesn't it? You started out with a bargain basement superhero team. Then you moved out to the low rent world of super villain side-kickery. And almost as soon as you did that, you started getting whooped on by a fourteen-year-old girl who used to be a babysitter! Actually, I'm surprised you didn't try to do something like this earlier."

Lantern barely managed to get a shield up to block the energy blast. The shield and blast crackled and vanished, sending Lantern stumbling backwards a couple of feet. The room crackled with energy as Shego stood in front of the bench glaring at the Lantern.

"Touched a nerve didn't I?" Lantern asked softly, noticing Shego shifting her weight as she readied herself for another attack. Lantern surprised Shego by walking calmly up to her and looking her square in the eye. "You can't win Shego. All I have to do is speak a word to bring Superman in. I can think a thought and have the Martian Manhunter appear right next to you. So don't even try it."

Shego stood her ground for a moment longer, considering Lantern's statement. Finally, with a resigned grunt she sat down on the bench and folded her arms.

"Good choice." Lantern smiled, turning towards the door. His hand hovered over the doorknob for a moment, and he turned back to Shego. "How did you get your powers?"

"What?"

"Your powers…the energy blasts and what not. How did you get them?"

"A meteor." Shego responded glumly. "It gave all of us our powers. My brothers and I."

Lantern nodded and continued out the door. He wasn't very surprised to find Batman and Nightwing waiting for him in the control room. He regarded them both with a nod. As usual Batman just stared at him, all emotion absent from his face. Nightwing however returned the nod, and he noticed the slight trace of guilt and anger in his features. Lantern knew Nightwing felt responsible for Shego being able to get into the Tower and attack a member of his team.

Lantern walked over to the computer terminal he had stopped at before talking to Shego and pressed a few buttons. The computer processed for a moment before spitting out a piece of paper.

"She's all yours." Lantern said to the former Dynamic Duo. "I've got what I need for now."

Batman and Nightwing exchanged a confused glance as Lantern made his way out.

-GL-

Lantern strolled into one of the many computer labs located throughout the Justice Leagues headquarters. He flopped heavily into the padded leather chair and sighed. His mask vanished as he leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

Lantern felt like laughing as he recalled the night he had just had. What started off as an amazing romantic encounter with his girlfriend had ended in near tragedy.

'Nature of the business I suppose.' Lantern thought as he opened his eyes and activated the computer console. He typed in a few commands and entered the results listed on the paper he brought with him from the holding room computer. A moment later the screen displayed an analysis of his ring's energy signature and the energy signature of Shego's blasts.

"Wow." Lantern said softly. The two energy signatures were nearly identical. A 75 match according to the computer. Lantern leaned back in the chair and considered the results.

'I guess that explains a few things.' Lantern mused, going over the bizarre reactions that had occurred whenever their energy blasts had collided. 'Of course this opens up a whole new set of questions. Good thing I have a pretty good idea on where to start.'

Lantern rose from his chair and stretched, releasing a loud yawn as he did so. He glanced at the digital clock on the wall near the door, its glowing red numerals displaying the time in military fashion.

0200.

"I suppose the next phase of this investigation can wait until morning." Lantern said to himself, stifling another yawn. He made his way out of the lab and headed towards section of the base that contained the living quarters. With the exception of the Martian Manhunter none of the Leaguers actually lived in their quarters, but they made an excellent place to stay for the night.

-GL-

"I don't think you understand your situation entirely Shego."

"Oh, I think I do Nightwing." Shego sighed. "I'm on the moon. You're going to pump me for information for a while, until you realize I'm not going to talk. Then you send me back down to Earth and throw me in a jail cell for the rest of my life."

"Not exactly." Nightwing smiled darkly. "If you decide to remain as uncooperative as you have been, there won't be a return trip to Earth. You'll spend the rest of your days in a small windowless cell on the moon."

"Bullshit."

"Try me." Nightwing challenged. "This is an amazing facility here. Nice cozy interrogation rooms like this, a gym, state of the art computer equipment, and a jail. It's not a big jail really, maybe about a dozen cells, and they aren't very big cells either. And they are pretty much escape proof. See, they were designed to hold the worst of the worst. The type of meta-human criminals that we don't ever want to get out. And what better place to hold them then on the moon, with a member of the Justice League right down the hall at all times."

"I'm flattered you consider me that powerful."

"I don't." Nightwing said, walking over to Shego, who sat on the end of the bench. He stared down at her, the white-eye slits on his mask seemed to narrow as he spoke. "However we will make an exception, considering the nature of your crime. I may not be an active member of this Justice League, but I assure you that I carry a lot of weight. And if I recommend locking you away up here for the rest of your life, without so much as a trial, it will happen."

"You can't do that." Shego said, the confidence slowly fading from her voice. "I have rights."

"You forfeited those rights when you broke into my Tower and tried to kill my teammate." Nightwing growled. "We take care of our own in the super hero community. There will be no outrage at locking you up and throwing away the key."

Shego considered the statement in silence, looking away from Nightwing and down to the floor.

"All you have to do is tell me who your source was. I want to know who gave you the access codes and the plans to Titans Tower. I want to know how they know. Give them up, and they get the cell on the moon. You get to go back down to the planet and enjoy a nice fair trial in front of an impartial jury. As impartial a jury we can find anyway. Who knows, you might even get sentenced to a jail you can break out of."

Shego remained defiant, but with much less bravado then she had ten minutes ago. A few minutes passed before Nightwing turned and walked to the door. He pressed a few buttons on the keypad by the door. The cell immediately went completely dark.

"I'll give you some time to think about it. And think about spending the rest of your days in darkness on the moon."

Shego heard the door click open then closed again. She slid back on the bench and leaned against the wall while she wondered if Nightwing was bluffing.

"Who gave you the Intel?" A deep voice unlike anything Shego had ever heard growled. Shego glanced around frantically. The voice seemed to come from nowhere, yet everywhere at once. Suddenly she felt a powerful grip on the front of her jumpsuit. She was immediately hoisted several feet in the air. Shego strained her eyes, which went wide as she realized who was holding her up.

"Who?" The Batman growled again.

Presently, Shego began to talk.

-GL-

John Stewart smiled behind his newspaper. He had retrieved his newspaper, poured himself a steaming hot cup of coffee and rolled out onto his balcony. He loved watching the sun work its way up from the streets and through the towering New York skyline to finally take its place high in the sky. He loved breathing in the sharp morning air as he read the New York Times. Mostly though he loved the fact that he was reading the paper and drinking coffee instead of trapped in the dead lock traffic that filled the streets below him.

There was a slight difference this morning however. Instead of the sun casting its bright golden glow on his balcony, it seemed to be casting a green glow. This was the reason for John's smile as he lowered the newspaper to find the Green Lantern floating over his balcony.

"Sorry to drop in on you this early Mr. Stewart." Green Lantern said, lowering himself to the deck of the balcony. "But I was hoping you could help me with something."

"On one condition Green Lantern." John glared at the young hero. "Please call me John."

"Of course." Green Lantern smiled. Then, to John's surprise, Lanterns mask vanished from his face. "My name's Ron. Ron Stoppable."

"Well, nice to meet the young man behind the mask." John smiled. "Are you always this forthcoming with your secret identity?"

"No, not really." Ron shrugged. "But hey, if you can't trust a fellow Green Lantern, who can you trust?"

John smiled and motioned towards a deck chair. Ron moved the chair so it was facing John and sat down.

"I assume you aren't here for Willpower 101."

"More like, Bizarre Encounters 1008, with a touch of Lantern History."

"Sounds interesting. How can I help?"

Ron took a deep breath and told John about the battle with Shego and the strange reactions that their energy blasts had. He then recounted what Shego had told him during their interrogation session, and what the computer had revealed about the two energy signatures.

"So," Ron said after he let his story sink in for a minute or so. "Is that how the rings reacted to each other whenever a couple of Lanterns would get into it, or spar?"

"Not exactly." John shook his head "The rings would pretty much act the same as they normally would, except there was a failsafe that would prevent severely injuring another Lantern."

"Well then I guess that rules out her secretly being a Green Lantern." Ron sighed. "What about the meteor? Any chance that it could have been, like, a piece of Oa or something?"

"Unlikely. The only thing like that was when Abin Sur crash landed on Earth, but that would have been way before your Shego got her powers."

"Who's Abin Sur?" Ron asked.

"He was the Green Lantern of Sector 2814 before Hal. He was mortally wounded when he crash-landed on Earth. His last act was to give his ring to Hal."

"Hmm., is that how you got your ring?"

"No, Hal gave me my ring. He chose me to be his replacement if he was ever unable to perform his duties in the sector. Myself and another human, Guy Gardner, were his backups."

"Guy Gardner eh? I would like to meet him sometime if I could." Ron asked, eager to meet as many former Lanterns as he could.

"Probably." John laughed. "You might regret it though."

Ron smiled and strolled to the edge of the balcony, his mask reappearing as he did so.

"I need to get going John, thanks for your help."

"Anytime Ron. One thing though before you go."

Lantern stopped and turned to John, who had a serious expression on his face.

"The way these rings work…well I think you might be barking up the wrong tree. Someone isn't going to gain superpowers from exposure to a Green Lantern ring. It might just be a coincidence that her powers are similar to yours."

"Possibly." Lantern shrugged. "I've got one more theory to pursue. I just want to be sure. If she has any link to the Lanterns, or the Guardians, I want to know about it."

John nodded in understanding. "Just remember, a lot of times when you are digging for answers you might uncover more then you expected."

Lantern nodded and took off, giving John a salute as he muttered under his breath, "I sure hope not."

-GL-

"Good morning sunshine!"

Kim wearily opened her eyes and stared into the smiling face of the Green Lantern.

"Ron." Kim smiled. She sat up in her bed and opened her arms. Lantern leaned down and filled them, squeezing Kim tightly.

"I'm glad your ok." Lantern said as he pulled away. "Sorry I wasn't here when you woke up."

"It's ok." Kim said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "Courtney explained the sitch." Kim narrowed her eyes and frowned before she asked her question. "And how is Shego doing?"

"She looks like she went a few rounds with the girl who can do anything." Lantern smiled, bobbing and weaving as he threw a couple of punches into the air. "And I doubt she slept very well last night."

"Why's that?"

"Well when I was leaving, Batman and Nightwing were going in to interrogate her."

"Ohhh." Kim smiled. "I sure hope she enjoyed that."

"I'm sure it was a pleasant experience." Lantern said, turning his head to the door, as it swung open. He smiled as he saw Courtney walking through, carrying a tray above her head like a waitress.

"Orange juice and muffins anyone?" Courtney asked, setting the tray down on one of the carts near Kim's bed. "I squeezed the juice myself."

"And you even had time to pour it into that Tropicana carton." Kim laughed. "I'm impressed."

"Well what can I say?" Courtney shrugged. Lantern walked around the bed to where Courtney was standing and gave her a brief kiss.

"Is the doctor in?" Lantern asked, pouring three glasses of juice.

"I think so." Courtney replied, motioning towards a door on the other side of the sick bay. "He's in there if he is."

"Thanks babe." Lantern said. "If you two ladies will excuse me for a moment."

Courtney and Kim exchanged a confused look as Lantern made his way across the sickbay and through the door Courtney had indicated.

Lantern entered the room and shut the door behind him. Dr. Midnight had been looking at something on the computer, and looked up when Lantern entered.

"Morning Doc, sorry to barge in like this but I need your help."

"Of course Green Lantern." Dr. Midnight stood and shook Lanterns hand. "What can I do for you?"

"Ok." Lantern began, thinking about how he wanted to word his question. "Let's say I have a blood sample from a super powered person. Using said sample, would you be able to tell if the person had their powers from birth, or if they acquired them from some sort of…accident, or something?"

"Absolutely." Midnight nodded. "A person born with their powers posses the meta-gene. Like any gene it would be part of their DNA. I could even tell you which parent passed the gene on."

"And if it were acquired later in life?"

"It wouldn't be a separate gene, but existing genes would most likely be altered. Do you have a blood sample, or is this a hypothetical conversation?"

Lantern reached into his gauntlet and produced the blood soaked bandage. He handed it to Midnight who took it with a raised eyebrow.

"It's from Shego, the lady who attacked Kim." Lantern explained. "I had to take that, I didn't get the feeling that Dr. Charles would let me take a DNA sample without explanation."

"Do I get the benefit of an explanation?" Dr. Midnight asked, motioning for Lantern to follow him through another door. The door took them to another medium sized lab. There were counters along each wall, and in the center of the room was a stainless steel examination table. There were also four lab tables, each one set off from the corner of the examination table. It reminded Lantern of his a high school science lab, only cleaner and with a lot better equipment.

"I really don't want to say anything yet." Lantern said, almost apologetically. "I'm basically following a hunch or two, and I just…well I don't want to jump to any conclusions."

"Logical. Batman would be proud."

Lantern laughed. "Something tells me I shouldn't hold my breath waiting for an 'ataboy' out of him though."

"You're learning this business quickly." Midnight smiled. "It's going to take a few minutes to get this set up and processed, if you want to wait with Courtney and Kimberly."

"Oh, ok. I'll be out there then."

"I'll call for you when I've got your results."

"Thanks Doc." Lantern tossed over his shoulder as he made his way back out into the sickbay.

"So," Lantern began as he reached the girls. "When do you get to go home?"

"Whenever I get up and going." Kim smiled. "Doc Midnight gave me a clean bill of health."

Courtney cleared her throat loudly and gave Kim a sideways glance. Kim smiled sheepishly as Lantern gave her a curious look.

"Ok, ok." Kim shrugged. "I get to go home, but I'm on light duty for a few days. No field work until he clears me."

"Oh, drag KP." Lantern placed a sympathetic hand on her shoulder. "Day after day of monitor duty. I know how bad that can suck."

"Oh man, I didn't even think about that!" Kim groaned.

"I'm so glad we don't do the whole monitor duty thing." Courtney said. "It sounds like a total bore."

"Well if you want to find out first hand some time in the next few days…" Kim offered hopefully.

"I'll take your word for it." Courtney laughed waving her hand in front of her.

"We've got the satellite service with all the movie channels on the moon." Lantern said. "I usually just switch a couple of the monitors over to one of those channels and watch a film."

"Ron!" Kim and Courtney both exclaimed.

"Please tell us your joking." Kim glared at him.

"What?" Lantern said defensively. "I never use any of the monitors that watch big important cities. Hey! Ow!"

Lantern recoiled as a muffin struck him squarely in the forehead. Courtney reached for the tray to grab another one as Kim pulled her pillow out from behind her head. Together they launched an assault on the Green Lantern, who quickly covered his head with his arms.

"Ok, ok! I'm kidding. Kidding!" Lantern finally exclaimed under the barrage of pillow and baked goods. He peeked out from his protective shell at the girls, who seemed satisfied with his admission of jest.

He lowered his arms and smiled. "Tough crowd this morning. Can't even make a simple joke."

With a soft whap! Kim landed one final blow to the side of GL's head. The two girls began laughing uncontrollably at Lanterns incredulous look. Eventually, defeated, the Green Lantern joined in the laughter.

-GL-

"Thanks again for coming over girls."

"Not a problem Donna." Bonnie said as she carried a bag of broken glass over to the doorway to Kim's room. She placed it next to another garbage bag and dusted her hands.

"Yeah," Monique added as she smoothed the wrinkles out of Kim's freshly made bed. "Anything to help Kim out."

"Not to mention any reason at all to come back to this Tower." Bonnie added.

Donna laughed, stepping away from the giant window, satisfied the section of glass she had replaced was snug in the frame and nice and clean.

"It's been a little crazy around here since that whole…incident." Donna said. "Cyborg has been working on totally overhauling our security system, and I haven't even seen Nightwing since I called and told him."

"Aw, boo. I wouldn't have come if I had known Nightwing wasn't going to be around." Bonnie said, wriggling her eyebrows suggestively.

"Well I'm sure Kim will be glad you came anyway." Donna laughed. She was about to say something else when a beeping near the door interrupted her. She made her way over to the door where a red light on a newly installed intercom panel was blinking.

"Ok, lets see here…" Donna muttered before selecting a button and pushing it. "Hello?"

"Donna?" Cyborgs voice came over the speaker. "This is Kim's room right?"

"Yeah, we are just finishing up in here."

"Great." Cyborg said. "Do you think they can finish up? I could use a hand down here for a little bit."

Donna turned towards Monique who gave her a thumb up and a smile.

"Yeah, I'll right down Victor."

"Great. Cyborg out."

"Well, I'll be down in the main computer core if you need me." Donna said. "If you can figure out how to work this new intercom, you can call me on that."

"Well I think we can handle it from here." Monique smiled. "How long until Kim's home?"

"She said she would be here around noon." Bonnie said. "That'll give us plenty of time to get everything ready."

"Very good. Thanks again girls."

"Anytime Donna."

Donna made her way out the door and down the hall. As soon as the door whooshed shut behind her, Bonnie and Monique grinned at each other.

"Now it's time to get down to business." Bonnie grinned excitedly.

"Nothing says 'get well soon' like a blind date." Monique said. "Everything is set up, except the most important part."

"The guy." Bonnie nodded. "But that will be taken care of soon enough Mon."

"I hope so. Something tells me they don't loan out their communications network for personal calls."

"C'mon, give me some credit here." Bonnie said defensively as she fixed her hair in Kim's mirror. "You took care of the food and the location, and I take care of the guy."

"I'll be back." Bonnie sauntered her way out of the room as Monique rolled her eyes.

-GL-

Roy Harper leaned back in his chair and sighed. He was currently located in the monitor room of Titans Tower, where he had been running diagnostic programs for what seemed like an eternity. Cyborg seemed determined to completely overhaul their security system in one day, and while he was making excellent progress, every change or upgrade required a new diagnostic program be run. Everything had to be working properly and be compatible with everything else.

Inwardly, Roy wondered what the big rush was. He agreed the system needed work, this Shego chick made getting in seem way to easy. However there wasn't exactly a line of super villains outside waiting to break in. They could probably spend a good solid week doing this and not have any intruder problems.

A light on the computer console blinked, indicating another system was ready to be checked out. Roy leaned forward and entered a few commands on the computer. One of the monitors switched from an exterior view of the tower to a black screen. After another second a seemingly endless string of numbers and letters began to flow across, indicating the diagnostic program had begun.

Roy threw a glance over his shoulder as he heard the door behind him whoosh open. He cocked an eyebrow as one of Kim's friends walked in, smiling at him. He remembered Donna saying she invited a couple of them over to help clean the mess in Kim's room up. Now if only he could remember her name.

"Hey there…Connie." Roy smiled hopefully.

"Close Speedy, it's Bonnie though."

"My sincerest apologizes Bonnie." Roy said, noting the dig at his former code name. "But please, call me Roy."

"Of course Roy." Bonnie cooed, moving in close to the archer. "I was wondering if you could do me a favor."

"Need help moving something heavy up there in Kim's room?"

"Not exactly." Bonnie said. "I need to make a little call."

"A call?" Roy furrowed his brow. "No cell reception in the Tower?"

"Well, it's kind of a private number. And I don't have it. That's where you come in."

"I don't think I follow."

Bonnie looked around the room conspiratorially and leaned down towards Roy, making sure he had a fairly clear view down her shirt.

"I need to make a call to the Justice League." Bonnie said softly.

"Um, for what?" Roy said, struggling to maintain eye contact.

"It's kind of personal."

"Well, as much as I'd love to help." Roy motioned towards the button that opened a direct line to the JLA. "That little button is for emergencies and business only."

"What if I told you it was an emergency?" Bonnie asked, moving behind Roy to place her hands on his shoulders, massaging them gently.

"I would say…a little lower…yeah…I would say, well maybe I can help you?" Roy moaned.

"You can help me, by letting me make one little call."

"For what?"

Bonnie sighed. "I want to set up a date."

"Oh, that's it? A date? Well why didn't you say so?"

"Really? You'll let me use it?"

"Of course not!" Roy laughed. "This isn't super hero love connection doll."

"But…it's not for me!" Bonnie stuttered, momentarily losing her composure. "It's for Kim."

"For Kim?" Roy asked in a tone that let Bonnie know he was more interested in helping.

"Yeah, for Kim. Surely a smart guy like you has noticed she has been down in the dumps a little lately. Monique and I think a date with a nice guy will help cheer her up."

"Well yeah but still…" Roy trailed off as Bonnie stopped rubbing his shoulders and slipped around to the front of the chair. She deposited herself in his lap and begun running her fingers through his red hair.

"Of course you would be justly compensated for your troubles." Bonnie smiled.

"I…" Roy was once again cut off as Bonnie leaned up and pressed her lips to his.

Moments later Bonnie broke the kiss and, breathing heavily, looked up hopefully at Roy. With a sly grin, Roy slid the chair closer to the computer console. Bonnie smiled and kissed Roy again, as he reached one hand behind her to open a communications channel to the Watchtower, audio only.

In the back of his mind Roy thanked himself for casting his vote in favor of Kim's membership in the Titans. He also thanked God for the age-old art of seduction.

-GL-

"So you're one hundred percent sure?" Lantern asked Dr. Midnight.

"Absolutely." Midnight responded, typing a couple commands into his computer. The monitor showed a split screen, with a DNA helix on each side.

"The DNA on the right side is the sample you brought me today. The sample on the left is my own DNA. Notice how the meta-gene strand is present in hers, but in mine one of the genes has just been altered.

"Yeah I think so," Lantern said leaning in to get a closer look. "A little more complicated then I learned in Biology class, but I think I get the point."

"Is it possible that an outside factor could have activated that meta-gene though?"

"Sometimes that's the case, but not with Shego." Midnight shook his head. "Hers was never dormant, it just may have taken her awhile to realize her powers. They probably began to manifest themselves during adolescence, when the body is going through its normal changes."

"I see." Lantern said, scratching the back of his head. "Can you tell which parent passed the gene along?"

"It came from her father."

"Ok Doc, final question. Can you run her against your records and see if it finds a match?"

Doctor Midnight leaned over the computer again and typed a few commands. The computer screen began scrolling rapidly through a list of names, with the word 'Search' blinking in the middle of the screen.

"Quite the database you've got Doc."

"I'm linked to every major medical center in the country. Of course I've narrowed the parameters to people who could pass on a meta-gene."

The next several minutes passed in silence before the computer chimed. The words 'One Match Found' flashed ominously on the screen. Lantern watched the screen intently as Midnight pressed a button on the keyboard to display the match.

"Dear God…" Midnight breathed as he read the name at the top of the file.

_**Scott, Alan, alias Sentinel/Green Lantern**_

Lantern sighed as his hunch was confirmed. He stared at the file on the screen, willing it to change. Unfortunately the screen remained the same, leaving Green Lantern to ponder his next move.

-GL-

Monique paced across Kim's room and stared nervously at the door. The room was spotless; once Bonnie had left Monique had cleaned for another hour or so before stopping to freshen up. There was no way you could tell a major fight had taken place the night before. What made her nervous was the fact that Kim was in the tower and on her way up, and Bonnie had not returned.

The two of them had put significant effort into setting up Kim's blind date. Monique had even called in a couple favors from some of Kim's old customers. A nice quiet dinner on a rooftop overlooking the city, the building owned by a businessman that Kim had saved from a fire a couple years ago. And the three-course meal prepared by one of New York's top chefs, a man whose daughter owed her NASA internship to Kim's good word.

Monique sighed and flopped down heavily on the sofa. If Bonnie hadn't been able to get a call out, she should have come back here as soon as she could so they could work out some sort of plan B.

Suddenly the door whooshed open and Bonnie came skidding in. Monique jumped up, ready to give her friend a verbal lashing when Bonnie held up a hand.

"We're cool!"

"Oh thank goodness. Where the hell have you been? I've been worrying my…" Monique trailed off as she took in Bonnies appearance. Her hair was completely a mess, with several strands of hair stuck to a slightly sweaty forehead. Her light blue tank top was wrinkled beyond belief, and one of the straps was actually torn. Realization dawned on Monique as Bonnie grinned sheepishly.

"Oh. My. God. Girl, you are such a slut!" Monique cried.

"C'mon now!" Bonnie cried defensively. "I got the job done didn't I?"

"Yeah I would say you did." Monique shook her head. "For almost two hours though?"

"Oh yeah." Bonnie sighed heavily as she smiled broadly. "I'll tell you what, that boy is skilled with more then just a bow and arrow. The way he…"

"Oh, enough!" Monique shushed her. "Spare me the details of your sexual escapades."

"You're just jealous." Bonnie said, sticking her tongue out.

Monique was about to respond when the door whooshed open again. They both turned to stare at Kim, who was standing in the doorway with her mouth gaping and her eyes wide.

"Surprise!" Monique and Bonnie said in unison. Monique crossed the room and gave Kim a tight hug.

"You guys…wow." Kim said, looking around as she walked in. "This place looks better then it did before Shego stopped over."

"We can't take all the credit. Donna helped out too." Bonnie said. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm alright, little tender in spots, but I'll make it." Kim replied. "What happened to you though?"

"Oh uh, just working hard, you know how it is." Bonnie replied fiddling with the torn strap of her shirt.

"So anyways Kim, this isn't all we've got for you." Monique cut in, drawing Kim's attention away from Bonnies battle damage. "I hope you don't have any plans for tonight."

"I think I'm on monitor duty actually." Kim said. "That's pretty much all I'm allowed to do for a couple days."

"Actually, Arsenal is going to cover your shift." Bonnie said.

"Roy? Cover a monitor shift?"

"Well yeah, I just…"

"We told him about your big date tonight and he was more then willing to cover for you." Monique interrupted.

"Whoa, whoa, date tonight?" Kim said, "What are you guys talking about?"

"We took the liberty of setting you up on a blind date with one of the super hero communities eligible bachelors."

"A blind date!" Kim cried. "Are you kidding me? I don't want to go out on a date, look at me! Whoever you got is going to fly off after one look at me."

"Oh please girl, you know you're still hot, even with a black eye." Monique smiled.

"Yeah, a little makeup will cover that right up anyway." Bonnie added. "Besides, he's one of you super types, he will understand that sometimes you get a little banged up."

"But I…"

"No, buts honey." Monique held up a hand to cut off any more objections Kim could conjure. "No ifs and no ands either. We planned this before your little incident obviously, but we thought you could use a good time. And you can use it even more after last night. So let's just hang out for a little bit, watch some TV, and then get you ready for a night out."

Kim glanced from Monique to Bonnie. Each girl met and held her gaze firmly. With a sigh Kim slumped her shoulders and sat down on the sofa.

"Well at least I know this blind date won't be with Roy. Nice guy, but a little too perverted for me."

-GL-

Lantern sat in his quarters on the Watchtower and stared aimlessly out the window. His investigation had certainly given him the answers he was looking for. Of course it also left him with even more questions then he had started with. Chief among them was how to approach Alan Scott with his findings, and to a lesser extent, how to tell Shego.

The chime on his door brought Lantern out of his thoughts.

"It's open." Lantern called, turning towards the door. He was surprised when The Batman came strolling through.

"A message for you." Batman said, handing Lantern a piece of paper.

"Thanks." Lantern said, reading over the message as Batman turned to leave.

"Hey, Batman?"

Batman stopped and turned back to Green Lantern.

"Did you and Nightwing find anything out? About Shego?"

"She gave us a lead, Nightwing will be following it up tomorrow."

"That's good. When I talked to her, she mentioned something about being a mercenary."

"And you laughed at her." Batman frowned. "She was telling the truth. I can put her in the vicinity of at least a dozen assassinations during the time period she mentioned. At least half of those can be confirmed as hers."

"Wow." Lantern said. "I guess there is a lot about her I never knew."

"We all have our secrets." Batman said simply as he walked out of Lanterns quarters.

"We sure do." Lantern sighed.

-GL-

"I just don't know what to do."

Ron slumped down on his couch and laid his head in Courtney's lap. Courtney stroked his hair and looked down at him glumly.

"Well obviously you have to tell them."

"I know, I know." Ron sighed. "But how? Oh hey Alan, how's it going? Did you know you have a daughter that tried to kill my best friend?"

"Might try a little more tact then that honey." Courtney smiled. "At least Shego will be easy, you don't really have to worry about her feelings."

"Yeah I guess. Still though, I'll pretty much be telling her everything she knew about herself is a lie."

"You are assuming though that both of them don't know already."

"Do you really think they know?" Ron asked with a frown. "You know Alan better then me, do you think he would let Shego run around like she has if he knew she was his daughter?"

"I guess your right." Courtney agreed. "His son Todd has been the villain more often then not, and Alan is always there to stop him. Of course, Todd didn't find out Alan was his father until he was a teenager."

"Not exactly father of the year is he?"

"I guess not." Courtney agreed. "Still, he's been good to me ever since I joined the team. I don't really have much bad to say about him."

"I'll do it tomorrow." Ron said with as much resolve as he could muster. "I'll swing by the mansion in the morning and talk to Alan, then head up to the moon. Gee, maybe Alan will want to tell Shego himself, and save me the trouble."

"Well if you are going to do that tomorrow, that means your free tonight right?" Courtney smiled. "How about a movie with your girl to clear your mind?"

"Oh, I would love to babe…"

"I sense a but." Courtney sighed. "What's the but?"

Ron reached into his pocket and handed Courtney the piece of paper he had been given on the moon. Courtney took it and read aloud from the wrinkled parchment.

"Lantern, meet me on the roof of the old Thompson building (55th and Andrews). I've got a job tonight that requires your particular skill set. 8 PM don't be late. Your pal, Arsenal."

"Well that sucks." Courtney groaned as she tossed the paper across the room. "Doesn't he have his own teammates to use?"

"Yeah, but none with a magic ring." Ron smiled, as a construct hand appeared to tug on Courtney's cheek. "C'mon, turn that frown upside down."

Courtney batted at the hand, but the construct persisted until she laughed.

"There's the smile I fell in love with." Ron said as he sat up and kissed her.

"Maybe it will be a brief mission." Courtney said hopefully. "Like helping some elderly people get their groceries home."

Ron laughed and shook his head. "Knowing Arsenal it probably involves a strip club in some way."

"It had better not!"

-GL-

Several hours later Green Lantern descended onto the roof of the old Thompson building. Lantern supposed the building had a rooftop restaurant or something at one point. Half of the roof had a kind of glass and steel beam roof over it. The other half was your typical New York rooftop. Stairwell access, air-conditioning unit, and various pipes all littered the roof. It was among these devices that the Green Lantern landed.

"Arsenal?" Lantern called, looking around the rooftop. "Hey Arsenal, it's your pal Green Lantern."

Lantern began walking towards the old restaurant. The crunching of gravel beneath his boots was the only sound that responded to his call.

"Ya know, I would except this kinda prank from Superboy but not you." Lantern called out as he strolled past the stairwell. He walked another couple of meters before a slight creaking stopped him in his tracks. The stairwell door, it was about time.

Lantern prepared a snide remark and turned to face Arsenal. His eyes went wide behind his mask as he instead found himself face to face with Bonnie Rockwaller.

"Hi" Bonnie said cheerfully. "I know, not who you expected, but I'm much better looking anyway right?"

"Buh…uh…"

"Close, its Bonnie. We've met before, kinda. Here, come with me."

Bonnie walked up to Lantern and looped her arm around his and led him towards the restaurant.

"Now I know you are probably wondering why I'm here and not your pal Arsenal."

"Yeah pretty much."

"Well Arsenal…he owed me a favor, so I had him call you out here because I didn't think you would come if I dialed you up."

"And you need me here why exactly?"

"You'll see in a minute. You have very nice arms by the way." Bonnie smiled as she rubbed her free hand over Lanterns bicep.

"Um, thank you." Lantern replied, trying not to let Bonnie see how uncomfortable he was.

"Here we are." Bonnie had led Lantern into the restaurant and into a surprisingly clean section. In the cleaned area sat a table set for two, with an elaborate candle lit centerpiece in the middle of the table. To one side of the table sat a fold out tray with several covered plates on them. Two of the plates sat on some sort of heating unit. Lantern assumed they were to be the main course of an increasingly weird dinner.

"Oh and don't worry, I didn't go to all this trouble for myself." Bonnie said, making Lantern feel a little bit better. "I did it for her."

Lanterns eyes went wide as he followed her gaze across the dimly lit room. On the other side of the table he could see Monique leading Kim into the dining area. Kim wore a black strapless dress that showed both the right amount of cleavage and the right amount of leg. Her hair was done up, and her makeup all but covered up the aftereffects of her fight with Shego.

"Green Lantern, I think you know our friend Kim Possible." Bonnie declared with a smile.

"And now you can get to know her even better." Monique added. "Welcome to the first date of the rest of your lives."

Kim and Green Lantern stared at one another for several minutes with a look of disbelief. After a moment, Lanterns lip twitched upwards and Kim had to look away to keep from bursting out in laughter.

"If I had known this was the mission, I would have worn my formal spandex." Lantern said slowly, with a smile. Kim laughed out loud, no longer able to contain herself.

"Well now there's one hell of an ice breaker." Monique smiled. "We'll leave you two alone. All the food is right there; three courses of course, so help yourself. Kim, call if you need anything. Lantern, enjoy your night."

Still laughing Kim managed a wave as Bonnie and Monique made their way towards the stairwell.

"Bye ladies." Lantern called after them as they disappeared through the rusty metal door.

Lantern turned and made his way to the table, pulling out Kim's chair and motioning for her to sit.

"Miss Possible." Lantern said, deepening his voice slightly as he did around people that might recognize Ron Stoppables voice. "Might I say you look simply stunning tonight."

"Why thank you Mr. Lantern." Kim smiled sweetly as she took her seat. "You look very dapper in your uniform tonight."

"Thank you." Lantern smiled, rounding the table to take his own seat. "It's off the rack, but I find it suitable for most occasions."

"You remind me of another guy I know. We used to hang out a lot, had dinner more times then I could possibly count.

"Do tell."

"Oh yeah, loved to eat." Kim continued. "But wherever we went to dinner he would almost always wear the same thing. Red hockey jersey, black undershirt and cargo pants. A couple of times the wait staff made him clip a tie on the jersey so he met the dress code."

"Hell of a fashion sense. Sounds like my kinda guy. Still hang around with him?"

"Yeah, some." Kim replied, glancing to her left to see a construct waiter pouring them each a glass of water while a construct waitress took two salads and a basket of bread from the fold out tray's and placed them on the table. "I don't see nearly as much of him as I would like to though."

"Well I'm sure he's a busy guy." Lantern smiled.

Kim shrugged and returned the smile as she put dressing on her salad and poked it around with her fork. Her smile faded as she noticed Lantern looking around the roof; while his ring glowed brighter then it had been moments before.

"What is it?" Kim asked pushing away from the table, her eyes suddenly alert, darting around the rooftop. Could Shego have escaped already? Was it someone after Ron? Could it...

"Sit back down KP." Lantern chuckled, interrupting her thought process. "I was just having my ring scan for any kind of cameras or listening devices or stuff like that."

"May I ask why?" Kim said, hoping Ron wouldn't say anything about her slight over reaction.

Green Lantern smiled in response. With a tiny flash of green light his mask disappeared, allowing Kim to see the deep brown eyes of her best friend.

"I wanted to make sure we could speak freely."

"Paranoid much?" Kim smirked.

"Are you telling me you think Bonnie and Monique are above doing a little spy work to see how your date is going?"

"Good point." Kim admitted. "So they duped you pretty good huh?"

"Yeah! What was that about?" Ron laughed. "I thought I was coming to help Harper with some sort of mission, then I get here and it's some sort of date. Say, did you request me?"

"No, I had no idea they were setting something like this up, let alone that it would be with you." Kim replied in between bites of her salad. "I'm glad it's you though. Something tells me I don't look my best."

"Bruises are sexy."

"Har Har." Kim muttered, tossing a crouton at Ron. "Besides that it's nice to be able to relax and be myself, not have to put on the whole blind date, first date act."

"An act?" Ron scoffed. "What act could you put on that would be better then the real you?"

"Listen to you." Kim blushed slightly. "Is this how you wooed Courtney? Flattered her to death?"

"A little bit of flattery, a whole lot of Ronness. You know, standard plan."

"Right, right." Kim nodded, smiling slightly. "So this makes what, one time the standard plan has been successfully executed?"

Kim laughed as Ron picked up his butter knife and pretended to stab it through his heart.

"Oh c'mon you know I'm kidding." Kim said. "I take it you and Courtney are doing pretty good?"

"Great actually. We were going to go out tonight, but I had to help Arsenal." Ron laughed.

"We can cut this short if you want." Kim offered, hoping Ron wouldn't take her up on it.

"No, no." Ron replied quickly. "She'll understand. There's always tomorrow."

"Good." Kim smiled.

"So, how is everything going in Titan land?" Ron asked as the construct waiters removed their salad bowls and refilled their drinks.

"Thanks." Kim said to the waiter. Realizing she had just thanked a figment of Ron's ring, she shook her head and looked back to Ron. "You know what?"

"Hm?"

"Lets not talk about work tonight. No heroes or villains or fights or anything like that. It seems like that's all my life is anymore."

"I hear ya on that." Ron agreed. "I like your idea, just two old friends having a nice peaceful dinner. I'll drink to that."

Ron raised his glass to Kim, who responded by clinking her glass to his. As they drank the waiters' set down the main course in front of them. A large steak with a baked potato for Ron and a juicy chicken breast with mashed potatoes for Kim. The two began to eat while recounting old stories and sharing laughs. Despite the recent events that had led up to this night, Kim couldn't remember the last time she felt this happy.

-GL-

Another long chapter, hope everyone enjoys. I'll try to get another chapter out before Christmas, but if I don't…everyone have an enjoyable holiday season.

R


	20. An Introduction and an Argument

Chapter 20

The morning was still young when Kim Possible strolled into the Titans Tower kitchen wearing her pajamas and a smile. Her alleged blind date with the Green Lantern had been wonderful. The food was great and her and Ron had talked for hours on what Ron had dubbed, "Chez Rooftop".

Kim grabbed a glass from the cupboard and opened the refrigerator in search of the orange juice. She couldn't help but think of how much she missed moments like last night. It seemed like a lifetime ago since they spent every afternoon in Bueno Nacho before running off to save the world together.

She poured herself a glass of juice and replaced the carton before making her way into the large living room type area that was connected to the kitchen.

"Good morning Kim." Nightwings voice greeted her as she entered the room. Nightwing was seated on one of the sofas in the room, surrounded on either side by a stack of newspapers from across the country.

"Mornin' boss." Kim replied happily, flopping down on the sofa across from Nightwing. "Catching up on the morning news?"

"Just finished actually."

"Do you ever sleep?"

"I could ask you the same question." Nightwing replied with a smirk. "Out pretty late on your blind date weren't you?"

"It went better then expected."

"So I hear, how are you feeling?"

"Once again, better then expected."

"Good." Nightwing stood up and stretched. "Meet me in the hangar in a half hour. We're going to Cleveland."

"Cleveland?"

"Yeah, Bonnie and Monique said you were looking to date, so I got us tickets to the Browns game."

Kim's eyes went wide for a moment before Nightwing laughed.

"Actually, I got a lead on who sent Shego after you." Nightwing smiled. "I figured you would want in."

"You figured right." Kim said as she rose off the sofa and followed Nightwing out of the room.

-GL-

Green Lantern sighed as he waited on the stoop of the JSA mansion. He wished he were just here to see Courtney. He could endure Wildcats ribbing and the fatherly looks that every male member gave him.

'But no', Lantern thought. 'Today I get to tell one of the greatest heroes the world has ever known that he has an illegitimate daughter who is a super villain.'

After what seemed like an eternity the door finally swung open, revealing the kind face of Jay Garrick, the Flash.

"Green Lantern, please come in." Jay gestured inside while giving the young hero a friendly smile.

"Good morning Mr. Garrick." Lantern said as he entered the mansion. "How are you?"

"I'm good thanks. Would you like me to get Courtney? I think she's awake."

"Actually, I'm here to see Alan this morning. Is he in?"

"Yes, I believe he's upstairs in the library." Jay responded with a frown. "Is something wrong son? You look a little distressed."

"It's been an interesting couple of days Jay." Lantern admitted. "I really can't say much more then that right now, sorry."

"I understand." Jay nodded and pointed towards the staircase. "You know the way."

"Yes, thank you." Lantern said, forcing a smile as he made his way down the hallway.

"Wow, not even a glance. I see where I rate."

Courtney's voice snapped Lantern from his thoughts as he reached the bottom of the stairs.

Lantern turned towards his girlfriend, who was standing behind him wearing a pair of black pajama pants and a red tank top. She was eating from a bowl of cereal but her frown was evident in between each spoon full.

"Oh, mornin' honey." Lantern forced another smile as he leaned over and gave Courtney a quick kiss on the forehead. "Nice P.J.'s."

"Maybe if I slept naked you would notice me when you go strolling by."

"I'm sorry babe." Lantern sighed. "You know what I'm going up there to do though."

"Yeah I know." Courtney said, before holding her spoon towards GL. "Fruit Loop?"

Lantern laughed and shook his head. "I'm more of a Cocoa Puffs guy, but thanks."

"Anytime. Hey, you never called last night."

"Yeah, sorry about that. It was pretty late when I got in, I didn't want to wake you up."

"Oh." Courtney replied, munching on a bite of cereal. "So what was the big secret mission?"

"Heh." Lantern chuckled. "Funny story about that. I'll have to tell you about it later."

"Um, ok?" Courtney gave Lantern a confused look. "Oh, hey…"

Courtney was glancing over Lanterns shoulder, the look on her face filling his stomach with dread. Lantern turned around slowly and found that he was facing the very man he was here to see.

"Green Lantern! Good morning." Alan Scott said cheerfully. "I'm not interrupting anything am I?"

"Actually Alan, I was wondering if I could have a moment of your time." Lantern asked as he turned away from Courtney, who offered GL a whispered "good luck champ", and a slap on the rear as she walked by.

"Of course." Alan said, his expression growing serious. "What's on your mind?"

"A lot." Lantern admitted. "Can we go somewhere private to talk?"

"Sure, I know just the place."

-GL-

"I never get tired of this view." Alan said.

"I know, puts everything in perspective." Lantern agreed, following Alan's gaze.

The two Green Lanterns floated in outer space, high above the planet they both called home. A construct bubble protected them both from the cold of space, and allowed them to speak as easily as they could on Earth.

"So, how is everything? Jade and Obsidian doing alright?" Lantern asked awkwardly.

"Fine on all counts." Alan said, giving Lantern a sideways glance. "Not to be rude, but I hope we didn't come up here just to chew the fat."

"I wish." Lantern sighed, turning towards Alan. "I don't really know how to put this, or go about this so I'm just going to tell you everything."

"Ok?"

Lantern began recounting the events of Kim's battle with Shego, and his and Courtney's save. He explained how the reaction between his and Shego's energy piqued his curiosity. He detailed the research he did, and the results he got from Dr. Midnight. He paused and reached into a compartment in his gauntlet and pulled out a piece of paper with a set of computer readouts.

"That's the result of an energy analysis and a blood test." Lantern said softly as Alan looked at the paper. "Shego is your daughter sir."

"My goodness…"

"The only other people that know are the Doc and Courtney." Lantern said. "Shego has no idea I was even looking into this so I mean…"

"No." Alan cut him off. "I appreciate what you are getting at, but she deserves to know."

"Of course."

An uneasy silence settled in the bubble as Alan turned back to the Earth and gazed longingly at the sphere for several moments.

"I had no idea." Alan finally said, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "God, the things she has done. Using abilities I passed on to her."

"You aren't responsible for how she used her powers."

"If her mother had let me know though, I could have helped her understand what was happening with her." Alan sighed. "She was married when we…met. We had dinner a couple of times. I never saw her after we…well you know."

"Yeah…"

"I never even knew Shego existed. You would think she would have contacted me when Shego started showing those powers."

"That's the weird thing." Lantern said. "When she was younger a meteor struck near her house. It gave all of her brothers' super human abilities. They all just assumed that Shego's powers came from that accident since they manifested at the same time."

"Did her mother even know Shego was my daughter?"

"I don't think we will ever know that I'm afraid." Lantern said. "Both her parents died several years ago."

Another silence settled over the duo. Finally Alan turned to GL with a determined look on his face.

"When can I see her?"

"Whenever you'd like." Lantern replied, forcing a small smile. "I know a guy that works where she's being held."

Alan returned the smile and motioned for Green Lantern to lead the way to the Watchtower.

-GL-

"So this is Cleveland huh?" Kim asked Nightwing as she surveyed the skyline from their rooftop perch.

"Yep, not a bad town." Nightwing replied. He was looking through a pair of binoculars in the opposite direction that Kim was facing.

"Can we stick around when we are done?" Kim smirked. "See if the river catches on fire?"

"Funny." Nightwing smiled. "There it is."

Kim walked over to Nightwing, who offered her the field glasses. She scanned in the direction he had pointed and found the bar they were looking for.

"So what's the plan?" Kim handed the glasses back to Nightwing, who stashed them in the duffel bag he had brought along. "Do we don disguises and pose as patrons of the bar, wait until our guy shows up, then follow him out and ask him questions?"

"Actually, I thought we would just kick in the front door and start asking questions."

"Oh." Kim said with a bit of surprise. "Not very subtle."

"Sometimes the direct approach is the best approach." Nightwing shrugged. "A place like that probably has a pretty regular clientele. We would draw just as much attention going in undercover as we would in our work clothes. Unless you've got an established cover I don't know about?"

"Front door it is." Kim stated simply.

After a brief trip across the rooftops the duo stood in front of the bar.

"After you." Nightwing motioned towards the door. "Just be ready for anything. Not a lot of our types come through this town, hard to say how they will react."

"Gotcha boss." Kim replied as she strolled up to the front door. Kim launched a kick at the heavy wooden door, sending it flying inwards. The door separated from its top hinge and hung at an awkward angle as Kim walked into the bar.

There were ten people total in the bar. Eight customers, a bartender, and the bouncer that had been working the day that Shego paid her visit.

Kim smiled as she stepped out of the light and into the dimly lit tavern.

"Hi guys!" She said cheerily. "Sorry about the door, but I'm looking for someone."

"You found someone." The bouncer growled. He stood up from his stool and made his way towards Kim.

"No, I don't think it's you I'm looking for." Kim said, rubbing her chin in thought. "Unless you happen to go by the name Small Time."

The bouncer's eyes narrowed at the mention of the name. "Nobody here by that name doll."

"Maybe you can tell me where I can find him then."

"Yeah, sure. I got his forwarding address right here." The bouncer smiled as he cocked his fist back and threw a punch at Kim's head.

Kim easily ducked the punch and stepped out of the way as Nightwing moved in from behind her. The bouncer's eyes went wide as Nightwing grabbed him by the forearm and pulled him forward. A split second later Nightwing used the momentum to crack the bouncers skull against the wall. The large man crumpled to the ground, unconscious.

"Anyone else have that forwarding address?" Nightwing asked in a voice that made even Kim shiver a little bit.

Everyone in was silent and focused intently on his or her drinks, except for one man in a booth towards the rear of the bar. He jumped out of his seat and sprinted towards the rear exit.

As soon as the man was on his feet, Kim was in motion. She reached into a pouch on her belt and produced a tiny shuriken in the shape of a stylized 'K'. With practiced precision she fired the weapon across the room, lodging in the door right where the running man's hand was reaching. The man yelped and jumped back.

"The next one will be lower…and not on the door." Kim cautioned, drawing another shuriken from her pouch. The man nodded in understanding and raised his hands above his head as Kim and Nightwing approached.

"Lets go outside and have us a talk." Nightwing said to the man. The man nodded slowly as Kim pushed him out the back door, collecting her shuriken as she passed.

"You Small Time?" Kim demanded once they were all outside in the alley behind the bar.

"N-no, not me." The man stammered. "I'm Phil."

"Why did you run Phil?" Nightwing asked.

"Hey man. I'm from Gotham, born and raised. Moved here just last year, got a job offer and…"

"Phil…" Kim snapped.

"Look I know what happens when you or the Bat shows up at a bar like this. Everyone gets a bloody nose 'till you guys get answers. Just tryin' to avoid that, ya know?"

"So where do we find Small Time Phil?" Nightwing asked.

"Probably the morgue." Phil replied, reaching behind his ear for a cigarette he had placed there. "Either a you got a light?"

"Why the morgue?" Kim asked as Nightwing pulled a Zippo lighter out of his gauntlet and lit Phil's cigarette.

"Ain't nobody seen him for about three days now." Phil said, taking a long drag. "And that cat's been coming to this dive every day since I moved out here. Type o' business he's in, you go away for three days…you don't come back."

"Where did he live?"

"What's it matter? Dead men tell no tales right?"

"Humor me Phil." Nightwing growled

"Alright, easy, easy. He lived in some shit hole apartment on West Third. Apartment 12c, I'm pretty sure."

"Wastin' your time though." Phil continued, taking a last drag from his cigarette. He tossed it to the pavement and ground the butt out with the heel of his shoe. When he looked up Kim and Nightwing were gone.

Phil looked around and shrugged. He then turned to head back inside, satisfied with the fact he had gotten off without a bloody nose.

-GL-

"Anybody home?" Green Lantern inquired as he poked his head inside Shego's holding cell.

"Piss off." Shego replied curtly, flicking a tiny energy burst in GL's general direction.

"Now is that any way to treat a guest?" Lantern shook his head as the energy blast harmlessly impacted the wall behind him. "Besides, I've got someone here to see you."

"If it's the princess, she gets the same greeting as you. Only with a bigger blast."

"Maybe next time." Lantern stepped aside, allowing Alan to enter the holding cell.

"Another Green Lantern?" Shego spat. "Convention in town or what?"

"Actually, I've been going by Sentinel the last few years." Alan remarked.

"Oh really? Wow, that is soooo interesting!" Shego declared mockingly. She then leveled a glare at the two heroes. "What do you two clowns want? I already told the spooky duo everything I know."

Alan turned to Lantern and nodded. Lantern returned the nod and slid back out of the door, shutting it behind him.

"So what can I do for ya pops?"

"I just want to talk for a couple minutes."

"Yeah? Well that's wonderful. Go talk to somebody else."

"What I have to say concerns you, Shego, nobody else."

"Unless it's about you springing me outta this place, I doubt I really care about what you have to say." Shego said. "And something tells me one of the oldest living heroes hasn't suddenly developed a soft spot for lil 'ol me."

Alan sighed and rubbed his temples. "Green Lantern told me you wouldn't make this easy."

"I'm just not that type of gal pops." Shego smirked.

"Fine." Alan shrugged. "Shego, I'm your father."

Shego responded by laughing loudly.

"Is that so Anakin?" Shego finally asked when she quit laughing. "Look, just because we've both got the green thing going on doesn't make us kin. I suppose Green Jeans out there is going to burst in and claim to be my cousin or something right?"

Alan crossed the room and handed Shego the piece of paper Green Lantern had presented him with earlier.

"See for yourself."

Shego scanned over the document and sat silent for several moments before finally quirking an eyebrow at Alan.

"You're serious with this?" She asked. "What is this? Some kind of lame attempt to get me over to the side of good?"

"No." Alan said. "I…we just thought you should know the truth."

"Well you and your "truth" can march right back out that door." Shego said crumpling up the paper and tossing it aside.

"Shego, I…"

"I said," Shego snapped, jumping up from her cot, "GET OUT!"

To emphasize her point she fired an energy blast directly at Alan's head. He managed to get a construct shield up at the last second, but the force knocked him backwards as the energy blast and shield disintegrated.

He gave a sad look at Shego, who stood with her good hand ablaze in energy, while glaring daggers at the older man.

"I'll be ready to talk whenever you are." Alan said as he made his way out of the cell. He could hear another energy blast slamming against the door as he shut it.

"Didn't go so well?" Lantern asked, standing up from a chair as Alan entered the room.

"Not really." Alan sighed. "Though I can't really say I blame her."

"No I suppose not." Lantern agreed as the duo made their way out of the detention center.

Inside her cell Shego paced angrily for several moments, randomly firing off blasts of energy. Finally she took a couple of deep breaths and sat back down on her cot, picking up the crumpled piece of paper as she did so. She unfolded the paper and stared at the results, deep in thought.

-GL-

"Man, what is that smell?" Kim gagged, putting her hand over her nose and mouth.

"Death." Nightwing replied simply, moving into the small apartment from the window they had used as an entrance. "Wait here."

Kim didn't argue, turning instead towards the window, trying to get a few precious gulps of fresh air.

Nightwing made his way silently and carefully through the apartment, heading towards the door that led to the only bedroom. His suspicions were confirmed as he entered the bedroom.

The body of the man he assumed was Small Time lay sprawled across his bed, a single gunshot wound in the middle of his forehead. The dead mans eyes stared ahead lifelessly and his limp form had become slightly bloated.

Nightwing examined the body for a moment, considering it's position. He then made his way to the area of the room where the gunman had fired the shot, hoping to find a shell casing, though in the back of his mind he knew he wouldn't.

"Hey boss what, oh my god." Kim gasped as she entered the room, still covering her mouth with her hand. Nightwing watched as the color drained from Kim's face.

"I told you to wait out there."

"I…I…I…"

"First dead body?" Nightwing asked, standing up and moving towards Kim. He guided her out of the room as she regained her composure.

"Yeah it is." She said softly. "How long?"

"Three days, maybe four, judging by the decay." Nightwing replied. "You ok?"

"Yeah I'm fine." Kim nodded. "I'm sorry, I bet you didn't react like that the first time you saw a dead body."

"No, my reaction was a little different I'm afraid." Nightwing said softly. The first dead bodies he had ever seen were that of his parents, after they had fallen to their death. The image was forever burned into Dick Grayson's mind.

"I'm going to look in there, see if I can find anything." Nightwing said. "Look around out here. Look for a phone book, computer, anything that might have a contact list or something like that. Someone gave this guy the information to pass along to Shego."

"Sure." Kim nodded, moving out into the living area as Nightwing returned to the bedroom.

Moments later Nightwing emerged from the bedroom to find Kim standing in the living room with a discouraged look on her face.

"Everything's gone!" She said, throwing her hands in the air. "The computer is completely gone, just a power cable. I can't find a scrap of paper in this place, other then those couple newspapers by the door, nothing that would have anything jotted down on it. The phonebook is gone, hell, the phone's gone!"

Kim pointed at the wall in the small kitchen. Sure enough the telephone had been ripped right out of the wall.

"Someone covered their tracks well." Nightwing said, walking around the apartment, checking for anything that Kim might have missed.

"I guess whoever hired Shego didn't have much faith in her abilities." Kim stated. "They killed this guy before she even came to attack me."

"Perhaps." Nightwing said. "Or they were covering their tracks in the event she succeeded but got caught."

"Hmm." Nightwing made his way over to the door and the newspapers Kim had pointed out. "Just the days since he was killed. Hello, what have we here?"

"What is it?" Kim asked hurrying over.

"The mail." Nightwing replied, pointing to the mail slot on the apartment door. "More specifically, a phone bill."

"Delivered after he was killed and cleaned out." Kim smiled. "What luck."

"Sometimes a little luck goes a long way." Nightwing said as he stood up. "Lets get out of here."

"Don't have to tell me twice." Kim agreed, wrinkling her nose again.

-GL-

Courtney stood at the foot of her bed, staring at her boyfriend, who was sprawled on top of the bed. Ron was staring back at his girlfriend, however his stare was quite obviously laced with confusion.

An awkward silence had settled in Courtney's bedroom at the JSA mansion. She had been moving about her room putting away laundry and tidying the place up a bit while Ron was stretched out on her bed telling her about the secret mission he had gone on the night before. He was laughing when he finished the story. Courtney, however, was not. She had put away the last of her laundry and was now just staring at the confused hero.

"What?" Ron finally asked, breaking the silence.

"What do you mean what?" Courtney asked, her voice rising slightly. "Do you honestly have to ask what?"

"Um, yeah?" Ron replied, sitting up in the bed.

"Well lets see," Courtney began, "you just related a story of how you went on a date last night with another girl, and how great of a time you had!"

"But…"

"Not to mention you didn't call me when you got home, like you said you would!"

"It was…"

"I was worried! I thought you got hurt again…or worse…"

"Courtney…"

"But no, you weren't hurt. You were having a grand old time with a girl that loves you. Which would be bad enough, but I know you love her as well."

"Now, just…"

"See this hair tie?" Courtney asked, holding up a small blue hair tie. "I was going to pull my hair back with this and do something special for you because I know how hard this morning was for you. Now, I don't think so."

Ron stared blankly at her for a moment. His eyes went wide as he realized what Courtney had planned. Courtney nodded as she saw the realization cross his face. She emphasized her point by flicking the hair tie across the room like a rubber band.

"Does the prosecution rest?" Ron asked a moment later. He thought he saw Courtney fight back a small smile, but he couldn't be sure. She merely nodded in response to his question.

"Ok, where to start," Ron began. "First off, I had no idea about this thing until I got there. It was a total set up by Bonnie and Monique. You can call them and ask them if you want. And they don't know my secret identity, so they weren't setting up Ron and Kim; they were setting up Kim and Green Lantern."

"Point number two, me not calling. That one is my fault, and I'm really sorry. I didn't want to wake you up."

"I was awake." Courtney said. "A little to worried to sleep."

"I'm sorry babe." Ron sighed. "I didn't think…but hey, you don't have to worry about me .Not as long as I've got this ring."

"Right, because you always come home without a scratch." Courtney rolled her eyes.

"Moving right along…" Ron said quickly. "As for the love thing, I don't know where you get the idea that Kim is in love with me, but I don't think that's entirely accurate. But you know she is my friend, and nothing more. You know that, right?"

"I do." Courtney sighed, sitting down on the edge of the bed. "It's just…well, you went on a date with another girl!"

"It wasn't a date Court." Ron assured her, sliding up to her and putting his arm around her. Ron felt a surge of relief as Courtney allowed him to pull her close, and nestled her head into his chest. "It was just two friends having dinner. We ate, talked about the old days, and then we went home. There wasn't even a good night kiss."

"Better not have been." Courtney mumbled

"Hey, there is only one pair of lips that mine kiss." Ron said, reaching down and tipping Courtney's face upwards. She smiled as Ron leaned in and gave her the type of kiss that removed any doubts about who he loved.

"I love you Courtney Whitmore." Ron said when they broke their kiss. "I love you more then anything, and no amount of crazy set up schemes by my friends are going to change that. The last thing I want to do is hurt you, so I'm sorry if I did."

"I forgive you." Courtney smiled, giving Ron a quick kiss. "I may have overreacted a little bit. In the future though, try to remember to call when you say you will, regardless of the time. And maybe try to keep the romantic dinners with other girls to a minimum?"

"Anything to keep my baby happy." Ron said as he lay back down. " That was intense though."

"What was?"

"Our first fight." Ron laughed.

"Awww!" Courtney cried with a laugh. "Dear diary today was like, so totally stressful!"

Ron laughed as Courtney stood up and walked across the room, looking for something on the floor.

"Ah, oh that's good." Ron chuckled. "Hey, whatcha doin?"

Courtney was bent over picking something up off the floor. She smiled as she stood up and made her way back to the bed.

"Well I said I was going to do something nice for you." Courtney smiled slyly, holding up the hair tie so Ron could see it before she pulled her hair back in a ponytail. "And I still am."

"Did I mention how much I love you?" Ron asked as Courtney climbed on at the foot of the bed.

"Feel free to mention it again."

-GL-

"So what exactly are you looking for?" Kim asked Nightwing, who was looking over the four pages of numbers that comprised Small Times phone bill. "And don't say a phone number, or I will come across this table."

Nightwing looked up from the papers and gave Kim a smirk. The pair sat at a table in the back of a semi crowded coffee shop. Nightwing had changed before they entered, and he was now clad in a pair of jeans, a black t-shirt and a heavy brown work jacket. He was a wearing a beat up red trucker cap, a pair of dark sunglasses, and had applied a fake goatee to his face. Kim had simply thrown a blue hooded sweatshirt on over her mission top, and placed a beanie of the same color on top of her head.

"I'm looking for a phone number that doesn't have a local area code." Nightwing replied, sliding two pages across the table for Kim to look at. "I doubt the guy that informed Small Time is from around here. Do you recognize any of those numbers?"

Kim looked down at the page to find that Nightwing had circled three phone numbers. The ones that weren't circled all had the same area code, and Kim assumed it was the local area code.

"I don't…wait." Kim did a double take at the last number she looked at. "That's a Middleton area code!"

Nightwing quirked an eyebrow and looked at the number Kim was pointing at. "Do you recognize the number?"

"No, I don't. But I know for a fact that's a Middleton area code, it's the same area code as my parents house."

"Interesting." Nightwing said, pulling a cell phone out of his pocket. He dialed the number and hit send, motioning for Kim to come in close as the call went out.

Kim got up and joined Nightwing on his side of the table, leaning in close so she could hear the conversation. The phone rang seven times before someone on the other end finally picked up.

"_Yeah, hello?"_

"Hello, this is Robbie Malone." Nightwing said, his voice light and relaxed. "This number called my phone a little bit ago and I was returning the call. May I ask who called?"

"_Beats me pal, this is a pay phone. I was just walkin' by when I heard it ringing." _

"Oh, I see." Nightwing responded as Kim slumped her shoulders and returned to her side of the table. "Thanks anyways. Oh hey, which pay phone is it? I've got a buddy who works at the gas station, might have been him on his break."

"_Well this is the phone out in front of the Stop and Save, over on Hughes Drive." _

"Oh, ok. Well thanks anyway, have a good day."

Nightwing flipped his phone closed and returned it to his pocket. "Anybody from home who would want you dead?"

"I don't think so." Kim said thoughtfully. "I tried to be nice to everyone in high school."

"So we can rule out the angry classmate who finished second to you in prom queen voting?" Nightwing smiled.

"Well first off, that would have been Bonnie. I think she's moved past hating me." Kim replied with a laugh. "Secondly, how did you know I was the prom queen?"

"C'mon, Kim. Pretty girl like you who claims she can do anything? Prom queen is pretty much a given." Nightwing shrugged as he gathered up the papers and stood up.

"Only you could make a logical deduction sound flattering." Kim blushed slightly as she stood up and gathered their empty coffee cups. She tossed them into a trashcan as they made their way out of the coffee shop. "So what's our next move boss?"

"We head home." Nightwing said. "I'll check those other numbers on the bill and see what I come up with. Then we go from there."

"I know someone that might be able to help with those numbers." Kim offered, surprised that she hadn't thought of it earlier. "My old tech guy Wade was good at that kind of thing."

"Fine with me." Nightwing nodded. "Even if one of these numbers is a lead, it won't be a direct line to the bad guys living room. It's never that easy."

"Obviously you aren't familiar with my rouges gallery." Kim smirked.

"Good point," Nightwing agreed. "At this point though, do you honestly believe one of your old villains is behind this?"

"No, I pretty much ruled any of them out when I saw the dead guy. I don't see any of my guys as cold blooded killers."

"Neither do I." Nightwing didn't say it, but he had ruled out the involvement of Kim's rogues from the very beginning. He couldn't see any of them having the resources or skill to hack the Titans security system. Shego was the only one Nightwing considered a serious threat, but it was obvious in this scheme she was merely the weapon, not the mastermind.

"I'll give Wade a call when we get back to the jet." Kim said. "It will be nice to talk to him, it's been awhile. Since before I joined up with you guys I think."

"Sounds good. The more people we have working on this, the quicker we can resolve it."

-GL-

"You again?" Shego groaned as Green Lantern walked into her cell carrying a tray of food. "I'm starting to think you've got a thing for me."

"You know it." Lantern smirked as he set the tray down on a shelf near Shego's bed. "I'm just doing this food delivery thing until Wonder Woman lets me escort you to the shower room."

"Oh baby!" Shego flashed a grin, which faded quickly when she eyed her dinner. "Crap again I see. I guess I can rule out the possibility that you're the head chef at Dorsia under that mask."

"I'll have you know I happen to be a wonderful cook. Unfortunately for you, that's not my work. Not that I would claim it if it were."

"Smart move." Shego said, poking at the trays contents with her fork. "So what's the old mans deal?"

Green Lantern had been heading for the door, but Shego's question stopped him in his tracks.

"What do you mean?" He asked, turning around to face her again.

"Just what I said." Shego shrugged. "He comes in here waving this daddy crap in my face, but why? Is this some lame scheme you guys have cooked up to get me to forsake my evil ways? Does my long lost dad just want to get to know me? Is he looking for closure on a one-night stand with my mom? What's his deal?"

"It's not a scheme." Lantern said. "You have my word on that."

"How noble." Shego rolled her eyes. "The valued word of a man wearing a mask."

"Honestly?" Lantern mused, ignoring Shego's jab. "I think he feels a little bad he wasn't there for you. You have an amazing power, which only a handful of people on Earth can say they understand. He probably feels that if he had been there to help you understand it you might have chosen a nobler route in life."

"So now he's got the better late then never mindset going on?"

"I guess."

"What makes you two assholes think I even want or need a father." Shego asked, taking a bite of her dinner. "God that's awful…I already had one dad."

"Just give him a chance Shego. He's a good guy. Maybe if you are nice to him, you can meet your sister."

"A sister? I have a sister?"

"Oh, now someone is interested in her new family." Lantern smiled. "Jade is his other daughter."

"She would have been nice to have around growing up." Shego muttered. "I hope this doesn't make us brothers or anything."

"No, no relation."

"Good, because I still kind of want to kill you." Shego grinned. "And I would hate to kill a relative."

"Well hell, I thought we were having a moment here." Lantern feigned disappointment. "Then you had to go all villain on me again."

Satisfied the conversation was over, Lantern turned and made his way to the door. He had the door half open before Shego stopped him again.

"Tell the old man I'll hear him out." Shego said softly. "But we do it when I'm damn well ready."

"I'm sure he will be happy to hear that." Lantern said with a smile. "No rush, by the way, you do have all the time in the world."

Shego's response was a medium sized energy blast that hit the door as it closed behind the Green Lantern. The sound of locks sliding into place and alarms arming themselves echoed throughout the cell as Shego stared down at the rest of her dinner. Despite the lousy food on the tray and the four prison walls around her person, a devilish grin spread across her face.

-GL-

"Well that wasn't very helpful." Kim sighed. "Not to mention, kinda awkward."

Kim pushed away from the communications station, rising from her chair and stretching. She crossed the cabin of the small jet and flopped down into the copilots seat. Nightwing gave Kim a sideways glance and held up his index finger.

"Well thanks anyway Oracle." Nightwing was saying. Kim had stopped carrying her Kimmunicator when she joined the Titans, so she had to use the jets communications station to contact Wade. However Nightwing was apparently wired directly to the mysterious Oracle. Kim had yet to meet Oracle, but had learned that Oracle was a valuable information source to any superhero that could contact he or she.

"You can do that?" Nightwing continued. "That's impressive. Remember back in the good old days when we had to break in and plant the bug right on the phone? You bet I did! Heh, yeah just let me know, and thanks again. Nightwing out."

Nightwing reached up and removed a tiny earpiece from his ear and placed it into a container on his gauntlet. He then reached across the console and flipped a couple of switches, turning the jets autopilot on. Satisfied everything was working properly, he turned to Kim and folded his arms.

"Shall we compare findings?"

"Lets." Kim replied, sitting up straight in the chair and turning to face Nightwing completely. "I had Wade run both the numbers, with some weird results. One of the numbers has apparently been out of commission since 1987. It used to be the sporting goods department at a department store in Jackson, Mississippi. The second number was a little more promising at first. It was listed to an actual company. However, it turned out to be a dummy company, which led to another dummy company, which led to a subsidiary of an actual corporation."

"Except that the actual corporation doesn't have such a subsidiary." Nightwing finished.

"Yeah and it was a weird choice." Kim said. "The company is a major charity, the Wayne Foundation. But the subsidiary was a weapons research and development branch."

"That's what Oracle came back with, more or less." Nightwing said. "I've got both the numbers being watched, if either one of them goes active again, Oracle will trace it and let us know."

"That's impressive." Kim nodded. "You two know each other? You and Oracle?"

"Yeah, we do." Nightwing said after a moment of silence. "We go back a ways."

"Back to the days of illegal phone taps?" Kim smirked. "Must have been a blast."

"You have no idea." Nightwing smiled slightly, with a hint of sadness. Kim was about to ask another question but Nightwing beat her to the punch. "You said your talk with Wade was awkward?"

"Yeah it was." Kim replied. "He sounded really surprised that I was calling. Like I was the last person on Earth he expected to hear from."

"How long has it been since you talked to him?"

"Too long." Kim admitted, the regret evident in her voice. "Wade saved my ass countless times, and he never had to leave his room. I should stay in touch more, I just haven't…needed his expertise."

"Still, he is your friend." Nightwing remarked. "Family and friends should always come first."

"Right, thanks for that piece of advice _dad_." Kim rolled her eyes.

"Just saying…"

"So is that where you are at when you aren't at the Tower?" Kim asked. "At home with Mrs. Nightwing, playing with Nightwing Jr. and Baby Bat girl?"

"Of course." Nightwing replied, matter of factly. "Crazy thing is, we all wear masks. I have no idea who Mrs. Nightwing is, or even what she looks like."

"Cute."

"I hope she is."

Kim shook her head and laughed, while Nightwing just shrugged.

"Speaking of masks." Kim said after another moment of laughter. She looked Nightwing in the eyes and waggled her eyebrows.

"Soon enough." Nightwing replied. He was a little surprised Kim had waited this long to bring the secret identity thing up. She had been a member of the Titans for several months now, and was quickly becoming part of the close-knit family. Donna spoke of her as a sister, and Nightwing was constantly impressed by Kim's abilities. He was the only active Titan with a secret identity, and while everyone else in the Tower knew who he was, Kim was still in the dark. "It's not a trust issue, just so you know."

"Oh I know." Kim leaned back in her chair, trying her best to hide her disappointment. "Knowing you would unlock the treasure chest of bat secrets. Probably even more heroes, if one were so inclined to look."

"Would you be inclined to look?"

"If someone wants to tell me who they are they will." Kim shrugged. "I understand the importance of a secret identity, even if I don't have one. I don't think any of the Justice League crowd has done the big unmasking for Ron, so I don't feel so bad."

"I'm glad it's not an issue."

"Not yet anyways."

"What do you mean, not yet?" Nightwing asked.

'Well it depends on who you are under that mask." Kim grinned. "There isn't much there, so I can tell you are good looking. And you've got to be pretty rich to roll around with all the toys and gadgets you have. So if you happen to be some eligible young bachelor under there, well…lookout!"

"Oh shut up." Nightwing laughed. Inwardly, he was impressed at Kim's insight. He had no doubt if she were given a bit more information she would be able to decipher his secret identity on her own.

"So where do we go from here boss?" Kim asked, serious again. "Case wise I mean."

"Well, our two best leads dried up in a matter of minutes." Nightwing sighed. "I can look into people that Small Time was known to broker information for, but I doubt that will turn anything up."

"Why's that?"

"You don't earn the nickname Small Time playing with the big boys." Said Nightwing. "From what Shego told me he was strictly…small time, up until this job. Which means one of his sources moved up the ladder overnight, or this was the only time the source came to him. Probably because he knew Shego, and because he would be easy to clean out."

"So we are totally back to square one." Kim groaned.

"Well, more like square 1.a. We at least know one thing about the person who hired the hit. He obviously is fairly handy with technology."

"Planting a fake company inside a place like the Wayne Foundation isn't exactly something they teach at Community College." Kim agreed.

"We will find this guy Kim." Nightwing assured her. "It just might not happen overnight."

"I understand boss."

Nightwing nodded and turned back towards the controls, checking their current flight path and engine status. Silence filled the cabin for several minutes before Kim decided to break it.

"So back in the day, I bet it really freaked the bad guys out if they caught you planting a phone tap or something."

"Because of Batman?"

"No, because of your shorts." Kim laughed. "Talk about striking fear into the heart of the criminal element!"

"Oh, shut up."

-GL-

A/N- Hope everyone enjoyed the first update of 08. As always, leave a review and stay tuned for the next chapter. Same Lantern time, same Lantern channel. Oh and if anyone takes offense to the little Cleveland joke, its all in fun, I'm from the area.

R


	21. About a Girl

Chapter 21

Blue Valley, Nebraska

The Whitmore Residence

Courtney Whitmore bounded happily down the stairs of the house she shared with her mother, stepfather, stepbrother and new baby sister. Baby Patricia was only months old and was the first child her mother and stepfather had together.

It was Saturday morning and while most of her friends and classmates would be taking advantage of the weekend by sleeping in, Courtney was awake, showered, dressed in costume (sans mask and gloves), and heading into the kitchen by 9A.M. To her delight, the smell of fresh pancakes and the sight of her mother and stepfather greeted her.

"Morning all!" Courtney said with a smile as she took her seat at the kitchen table.

"Well someone is certainly full of life for a Saturday morning." Courtney's mother, Barbara, commented as she leaned over and poured Courtney a glass of orange juice.

"Just looking forward to an exciting weekend in the big city." Courtney replied, sipping her juice. "I may not hate this place as much as I used to, but it still can't hold a candle to the Big Apple."

"Well I'm glad our horrible little town has finally grown on you." Barbara responded with a smile, recalling how much Courtney had despised Blue Valley when they first moved here. "So much so you even stayed here on a Friday!"

"Well, I hadn't been to a basketball game in quite awhile. Figured I should make an appearance, being my senior year and all." Courtney shrugged.

Courtney's double life as Stargirl had kept her from many school functions over the years, though she rarely complained. Even though she could reach New York in almost no time at all, Courtney mostly remained in Blue Valley during the week unless there was a major JSA emergency. She had bent that rule a little more now that she was dating Ron, but she always made sure her schoolwork was done first. Courtney spent every weekend in New York, usually leaving as soon as she could get home from school and changed. Once she graduated, Courtney planned to move into the mansion full time and attend college somewhere in or near the City.

"So Courtney", Pat Dugan said as he folded his newspaper and set it aside, making room for the plate of pancakes that Barbara was placing in front of him. "When do we get to meet him?"

"Um, meet who?" Courtney replied, trying to act confused.

"You know who, your new boyfriend" Pat replied with a smirk. Years before, Pat Dugan had been Stripesy, sidekick to the original Star Spangled Kid. When Courtney decided to strap on the Kid's old cosmic converter belt and try her hand at the superhero business Pat knew he had to bring himself out of retirement. Realizing he was a little old for his Stripesy tights, Pat constructed S.T.R.I.P.E, a giant robot that he could ride around in to help Courtney in her battles. More importantly, it allowed him to keep an eye on his stepdaughter. As Courtney grew more experienced and spent more time with the JSA, Pat spent less time as S.T.R.I.P.E. He still served the JSA in a reserve fashion, and was also their mechanic, dropping by when needed to service their jet, or whatever else needed fixing.

"How did you know?" Courtney asked, taking a bite of her pancakes.

"Well I may not be around the mansion all the time these days, but I'm there enough to know what's going on."

"Alright, who talked?" Courtney demanded, waving her butter knife in a threatening fashion.

"Well you haven't exactly done a very good job at hiding it honey." Barbara chimed in as Pat chuckled. "You've been cheerier lately then I've seen you in a very long time."

"Well I suppose I have."

"So who is he, when do we get to meet him, and why didn't you tell us?" Barbara inquired; ticking the questions off on her fingers asked them.

"Well I never told you because I knew you would want to meet him, and I'm not sure how that's going to work." Courtney admitted.

"What do you mean?" Pat asked.

"Well, he's got a secret identity, and I don't know how he feels about, ya know, a lot of people knowing it. And it would look pretty wild if the neighbors saw the Green Lantern flying into town for dinner at the Dugan house."

"Green Lantern!" Barbara said with a smile, which quickly faded into a frown. "The young one right? Please tell me you aren't dating the one on your team who is older then I am."

"Mom!" Courtney cried. "First off, eww! That would be like dating Grandpa! Second, yes the young one. He is about two years older then I am."

"Good." Barbara smiled again. "He's cute, and in the right age group."

Courtney rolled her eyes as Pat pressed the issue of a meeting.

"You need to talk with him and figure out something he would be comfortable with. Then let us know and we will make it happen."

"Why is this such a big deal?" Courtney asked. "Isn't the fact that he's a card carrying member of the Justice League enough proof that he's a good guy?"

"Nobody is saying he's not a good guy honey." Barbara assured her. "But he's dating our daughter, and that's more then enough reason for us to meet him. If you were dating someone from your school we probably would have met him by now, right?"

"Probably."

"Well this shouldn't be any different."

"I guess so…"

"Look, we promise not to embarrass you." Pat said. "We'll even send Mike to a friends house for the evening if you want."

"Really?" Courtney had grown to like her stepbrother Mike, but he was still a pain in the rear end. "This whole deal just got a little better."

"Sure," Barbara added, "we could even get a sitter for Patricia and go out somewhere."

Courtney stood and cleared her place at the table. When she was done she walked over and gave her Mom a kiss on the cheek and Pat a quick hug.

"I'll talk to Green Lantern and see what he wants to do." Courtney sighed. "Then I'll let you know."

"Thanks honey, we appreciate it." Barbara said with a smile. "Have a safe flight, and be careful out there."

"Yeah, yeah, I will." Courtney replied as she headed out of the kitchen to gather her bag and cosmic rod. "Love you guys."

Moments later, Stargirl was streaking through the sky on her way to New York City.

-GL-

"Yeah, sure."

"Yeah sure? That's it, yeah sure?" Courtney asked incredulously

"How about, yeah sure, I'd love to?" Ron offered from his sprawled out position in his bed. He draped his arm over his half opened eyes. "Lets just make it dinner and not breakfast ok?"

"I thought you would be a little more opposed to this."

"Why would I be opposed to it?" Ron asked, lifting his arm to cast a blurry-eyed gaze at Courtney. "Are you opposed to it? Am I an embarrassment to you?"

"No, not at all." Courtney sighed, pulling her mask and gloves off, tossing them on the nightstand. "I just thought you might be a little more…I dunno. I thought meeting the parents was supposed to be a big deal for a guy."

"I'm sure it is for most guys." Ron admitted. "But when you constantly battle evil, meeting parents kinda gets the volume amped down a bit, ya know?"

"I suppose so." Courtney agreed, sitting down on the bed next to Ron. "I guess I'm just kinda nervous, I want you guys to like each other."

"We will, don't worry," Ron said, offering a reassuring pat on her leg. "Do I have time to go back to sleep before the movie?"

"Yeah, you have a couple of hours."

"Good, because it was a late night of thwarting villains last night." Ron said, closing his eyes. "And the initial adrenaline of seeing you burst in here in full gear is wearing off."

"Yeah sorry about that." Courtney smiled sheepishly. "Didn't mean to make you think it was a crisis."

"Oh, s'alright." Ron mumbled as he drifted off to sleep. "You look sexy in your costume anyway…"

Courtney smiled and gave her slumbering boyfriend a quick kiss on the forehead. She rose and stretched, trying to decide how to kill the next couple hours.

-GL-

An armored truck quickly made its way through the streets of Manhattan. The truck swerved from lane to lane, sometimes dodging the other cars on the road, and sometimes the other cars weren't so lucky. The armored truck sideswiped and rear-ended several automobiles, leaving a nice path of destruction behind.

"Gee, what's wrong with this picture?" Stargirl wondered aloud as the sound of squealing tires led her gaze to the city streets below her. The armored truck was making a hairpin turn onto a side street. The truck went on two wheels, and was righted only when it slapped into a We-Haul truck heading in the opposite direction. The armored truck wobbled slightly, but never slowed down.

Stargirl turned as well, increasing her speed to catch up to the truck.

"Money Delivery and Protection Services." Stargirl read aloud from the side of the truck and rolled her eyes. "How discreet."

The truck went smoking through an intersection and a red light, causing several accidents. At the next side street, three police cruisers whipped out onto the main road. Just like that, the chase was on.

"Wait for it…wait for it." Stargirl sighed as she rapidly closed on the truck. "There it is!"

On cue, a masked man hung out of the passenger window of the truck and leveled a pistol at the police cruisers. He squeezed the trigger rapidly, firing several rounds.

The man screamed as the pistol was blasted from his hand by an energy burst from the sky. His looked to the sky and dove back inside the truck when he saw the source of the energy burst. He emerged moments later with a long black tube. He rested it on his shoulder and aimed it at Stargirl.

"Oh, come on!" Stargirl cried as the man fired his weapon, sending a small missile streaking towards her. She easily dodged the poorly aimed missile, but broke off her pursuit to destroy it before it hit a building.

'One nice thing about the country I guess.' She thought as she blasted the projectile with her cosmic rod. 'No tall buildings for misfired weaponry to hit.'

She turned around and made a beeline for the truck. The gunner was taking his time, waiting to get a good shot at the heroine. Stargirl made him pay for his hesitation, blasting the rear right tire of the armored truck.

The vehicle shook violently, the driver desperately trying to maintain control. His passenger dropped his tiny rocket launcher and held on to the side of the truck for dear life. Eventually the driver lost total control as he jerked the wheel hard to the right, causing the truck to come toppling over on its drivers side.

The truck skidded for about two hundred feet before it finally came to rest. Police cruisers screeched to a halt several feet behind it. Stargirl was impressed with how quickly the police officers were out of their cars with their guns trained on the vehicle.

Stargirl swooped over the scene and landed in front of the wrecked vehicle, where she could see in the windshield. A pile of three slowly stirring men filled the front seat. Stargirl walked up and kicked out the windshield, causing the men to spill awkwardly onto the street.

One of the more conscious men reached into his coat, but stopped when he found himself staring at the business end of a cosmic rod.

"I wouldn't try it, this things loaded." Stargirl said with a smile.

Defeated, the masked man raised both his hands slowly into the air. As he did so several of New York's Finest came running around either side of the armored truck.

"Take 'em away boys." Stargirl said with a wave of her hand as the officers grabbed the men and began to search and cuff them.

"Thanks Stargirl." One of the officers holstered his side arm and extended his hand.

"Oh, your welcome." Stargirl replied, accepting the outstretched hand. "Glad I could help Lieutenant."

The lieutenant gave her a smile and a nod, and turned back to the wrecked truck. Stargirl turned in the opposite direction, prepared to fly off. A crowd of onlookers had other ideas however.

"Stargirl! Stargirl!" A pair of young girls ran up to her and stuck a small note pad and a pen out at her. "Please?!"

"Girls!" A woman in her early thirties came up behind the two girls. "I'm sorry. You don't have to, I'm sure you've got to be going. Stargirl has more important things to take care of children."

"No, it's alright." Stargirl said with a smile. "And to whom should I make this out to?"

"Caitlin!"

"Michelle!"

Stargirl jotted a short message and her signature on the paper and handed it back to the little girls, who looked at it and squealed with delight. They then bounded off towards a man holding several shopping bags and wearing a bemused expression on his face.

"Thank you so much." The woman said with a smile before she turned and followed her daughters, who were excitedly showing their father their new autograph.

Several other onlookers, inspired by the young girls, closed in on Stargirl, waving various pieces of paper at her.

"Ok, ok!" Stargirl laughed. "One at a time, and I need a pen."

A pen was offered to her, and she stood signing everything from napkins to city maps. A young man even rolled up his sleeve and had her sign his forearm. She also fielded some questions as she signed.

"What's being in the JSA like?"

"Do you know Superman?"

"Can I touch your rod?"

"How long have you been a hero?"

"How is Wildcat even still alive?"

"Are you dating the Green Lantern?"

"Well let's see." Stargirl drew in a deep breath to answer all the questions that were being fired at her. "Being in the JSA is great, I've learned so much from them. Yes, I do know Superman; he's a really nice guy. Um, no you cannot touch my rod. Almost four years now. I dunno, lets say magic. And we are, wait what?"

"Are you two dating?" A middle-aged man asked again. "I own a telescope and an apartment with rooftop access. I've seen you guys flying around together."

Stargirl gave the man an odd look.

"What? I'm not a superhero peeping tom or anything." The man replied defensively, "I like to look at the stars, and its kind of hard not to notice a bright green man floating by."

"Well we…" Stargirl blushed, unsure how she wanted to answer the question. "I mean to say…"

"Aw, they are!" A girl around Stargirls own age exclaimed. The declaration elicited several more 'aw's' from the group. The size of the crowd began to dwindle as people dispersed after having their question answered or their item autographed.

"He's cute." A girl of about fourteen years told Stargirl with a wink. Stargirl smiled at her as she signed the girls Statue of Liberty postcard.

"Nice guy too." Another girl commented. "My dad is a firefighter, and Green Lantern visited his station house last year. He's got kind of a weird sense of humor though."

"That's him." Stargirl grinned. The girls thanked her and departed, leaving only a young man close to her age. "Hello."

"Um, hi." He replied shyly. "Well, I guess I'm too late, but uh. Well, you know…"

Stargirl gave him a confused look as he handed her a folded up piece of paper. She looked down at the paper, and then back up to ask the boy his name, but he had taken off, rapidly walking down the street.

Now even more confused, Stargirl unfolded the paper and smiled. Inside was the name Tom, with a phone number below it.

"Aw." Stargirl smiled. "How sweet."

"I'm telling Ron." A whispered voice said from behind her.

Stargirl jumped and whirled around.

"Oh jeez, Kim!" Stargirl gasped. "You almost gave me a heart attack."

"Sorry." Kim smiled. "I couldn't help myself."

"Jerk." Stargirl laughed, as the two girls moved their conversation down the sidewalk and away from the crime scene. The police had taken the would-be robbers away, and were now overseeing the transfer of money from the wrecked truck to another armored truck. "What brings you into the city today?"

"Shopping, what else?" Kim replied, holding up a handful of bags. "I was a couple of streets over when I heard all the commotion. I got over here just in time to see you wrap it up and start your autograph session. What about you?"

"Oh I was just passing time until you know who gets his lazy butt out of bed. We're going to see a movie this afternoon."

"That's fun." Kim replied. "Well normally I would ask if you wanted to grab a quick bite to eat…"

"Yeah, I'm not exactly dressed for that am I?" Stargirl said, looking down at her costume. "Rain check though?"

"Absolutely." Kim nodded.

"If you don't want to eat alone though", Stargirl grinned. "You can give Tommy here a call."

"That's alright." Kim laughed. "Kids got some guts though, giving his phone number to a superhero and all."

"True. It's a first for me."

"Well it better be the last", Kim teased. "That's my best friend you're dating you know."

"Oh I know, Tom never had a chance."

"Damn straight."

"Speaking of which…"Stargirl chuckled. "I better go make sure he's out of bed."

"Good luck with that." Kim offered. "Might just be easier to raise the dead."

The girls had a good laugh, then leaned in and shared a quick hug.

"Have fun." Kim said with a wave as Stargirl lifted off the ground.

"Thanks, buy me something nice!" Stargirl called down to Kim, returning the wave.

-GL-

Stargirl couldn't believe her eyes as she slid in through the window of Ron's apartment. Stretched out on the sofa, showered and completely dressed, was her boyfriend.

"What's this all about?" Courtney demanded as she peeled off her mask and gloves. She dropped them onto the arm of the chair, sitting down as she did so.

"It's a show about these two guys who are cops, and also friends." Ron replied, turning from the television to Courtney, who was in the process of untying her boots. "Ever consider Velcro?"

"Only every time I get dressed." Courtney laughed, pulling off one of the knee-high boots. "And I didn't mean the show you're watching, I mean you being awake and dressed."

"Well I did have an alarm set, and you are twenty minutes late."

"I am?" Courtney asked, glancing at the clock. "Oh crap! I'm sorry, there was this armored car, and these people and…do I have time for a shower?"

"If you hurry."

"I will, I just need to rinse off real quick."

"Yeah, you do smell a little bit like foiled robbery." Ron called to his girlfriend, who had quickly made her way to the bathroom. The sound of running water was Courtney's response as Ron returned his focus to the television show about cops, who were also friends.

-GL-

Two hours, one movie, two sodas and one medium sized bag of popcorn later, Courtney and Ron exited the movie theater. They headed back to Ron's apartment, walking hand in hand. Ron wore a satisfied expression on his face while Courtney had a slightly confused look about her.

"You didn't like it did you?" Ron finally asked after they had walked in silence for a couple of moments.

"No, not particularly." Courtney admitted. "The over the top, overly violent action movie isn't really my cup of tea. Actually, I'm kind of surprised you're still into them."

'What do you mean?"

"After everything you've seen in your life, I'm just kind of surprised you enjoy something that more or less glorifies the things we fight to stop on a daily basis." Courtney shrugged. "That doesn't bother you at all?"

"To be honest with you, I've never really thought of it that way before."

Again they walked in silence as Ron pondered Courtney's point of view.

"It's still just a movie, I guess." Ron finally said. "It's so over the top and unrealistic, I guess it doesn't hit that close to home for me."

"You don't sound very sure of yourself."

"I know. Thanks for that, you've forever ruined the good image of the action movie in my mind."

"Oh, so sorry honey." Courtney reached up and gave Ron a quick kiss on the cheek. "I guess that means we will have to see more chick flicks, right?"

"Not until you find a way to ruin comedy and horror movies for me." Ron replied with a smirk.

"Well, you might be safe on those, I like comedy and horror." Courtney said. "However, we have more important matters to discuss."

"Whether or not action movies like that one inspire real life violent behavior in impressionable youth?" Ron asked.

"Um, well not really." Courtney said, taken aback. "I was talking about meeting my folks, but I suppose we could discuss that if you really want to."

"Nah, I like to leave speculations to the speculators." Ron grinned.

"Riiiight." Courtney shook her head and drew herself closer to Ron. The wind had picked up and the crisp air seemed to be cutting right through her coat. "So, any ideas?"

"Are there any nice restaurants in Blue Valley?" Ron asked. "Or do you think your Mom would rather do dinner at your place?"

"You really want to go out there?"

"Sure, why not?" Ron shrugged. "It would probably be easier then bringing them here. Besides, it will be cool to see where the world famous Courtney Whitmore calls home."

"Cute. What if someone that I know sees us out though? It's a small town; people will know you aren't a local. And there is always the off chance that someone might recognize Kim Possible's former sidekick."

"Right, because that's likely." Ron laughed. "Well, what do you tell all your friends when you take off to New York every weekend?"

"Uh, well…"

"Well what?"

"I don't really have many friends." Courtney said quietly. "My best friend Mary, she knows what I do. Everyone else…well, they just never notice I'm not around."

"Aren't we just two peas in a pod?" Ron commented, putting his arm around his girlfriend, giving her a reassuring squeeze. He thought back to his own high school days where the only people he considered friends were Kim, Monique, Wade and Felix. He wondered how many people even noticed he wasn't around for the last few weeks of his senior year.

"Ok, I've got it."

"You do?" Courtney eyed him suspiciously.

"Yup. If anyone asks, we just say you came to New York to visit a college one weekend. While you were in the city, you met yours truly. We stayed in touch, started a thing, and now I've come out to visit you."

"Wow, that's pretty good." Courtney said, obviously impressed. "Good reason why I'm going so far away to school, if that ever comes up down the road."

"Now you're thinking. Go ahead and set something up for one night this week, just let me know when."

"Sounds like a plan." Courtney smiled. "Here I thought you were just good looks and a magic ring. Turns out you've even got something going on upstairs."

"I believe I shall choose to take that as a compliment."

They had finally made their way to Ron's apartment building and darted inside as soon as Ron could get the outside door unlocked. The door barely had time to shut behind them as Courtney jumped up into Ron's arms. He was caught off guard but still managed to catch her. She wrapped her arms around Ron's neck and looked him in the eye.

"I'm cold." She declared. "Carry me."

"Yes mi lady." Ron smiled, leaning in to kiss a pair of ice-cold lips. "The penthouse suite of Ronald Stoppable, coming right up."

"Oh, I can't wait to show mamma my keeper." Courtney said, resting her head on Ron's shoulder as he began the climb up the stairs.

-GL-

It was Thursday evening as Courtney sat in her mother's car, drumming her fingers on the steering wheel impatiently. She glanced at the clock and sighed. Ron was going on ten minutes late. The meet the family dinner had already been delayed twice and Courtney really hoped it wouldn't happen a third time. She wasn't sure if her nerves could take any more delays.

"Almost seems like the forces of evil know when we've got plans." Ron had said when he called Tuesday to cancel. Courtney had laughed, trying not to let Ron know how nervous and excited she was about him meeting her parents.

"Where the hell is he?" Courtney practically shouted. She had the car stopped on the side of a back road, which was more or less in the middle of nowhere. The plan was for Ron to meet her there, and they would drive from there to the restaurant Mrs. Whitmore had chosen for dinner. The side road was off of a more heavily traveled state road, which if taken out of town would eventually lead to the airport.

It was Ron's suggestion, the reasoning being that if someone saw them, they would assume they were coming from the airport. Courtney agreed it made sense, but thought it might have been a little extreme. She couldn't argue though when Ron pointed out that nothing was to extreme to ensure the safety of her family.

A tapping on the passenger window startled Courtney. She turned to see Green Lantern smiling, and oddly dressed. Over his uniform was a tattered construct jacket, and he had a beat up construct top hat on his head. He also had a long stick over his shoulder with tattered pouch on the end.

Courtney rolled her eyes as he opened the door and slid in.

"This car goin' to Blue Valley?" Green Lantern asked slowly. "I can't pay, but I'll make it worth your while if you give me a lift."

"Save it Super Hobo." Courtney snapped as she turned the car on and pulled back onto the road. "You're late."

"Well excuse me!" Ron replied, as all of his constructs vanished. His uniform vanished as well leaving him in a pair of black dress slacks and a white undershirt. "I guess next time I'll just let the passenger plane with the engine failure plummet to the ground."

Courtney was silent as she steered the car off of the side road onto the main route. Ron reached into the duffel bag he had disguised as his tattered pouch and pulled out his dress shirt, which was surprisingly wrinkle free.

"Come on sweetheart, just relax." Ron pleaded, reaching over and rubbing her leg. "You're gonna worry yourself to death."

Courtney sighed and looked at Ron, forcing a smile. She took his hand in hers and gave it a squeeze.

"I'm sorry I snapped at you. I just want this go smooth. I want them to like you, and you to like them. It's all very nerve wracking."

"I can see that. Don't worry though. Your step dad is in the hero business, so we have that in common, and your Mom raised you, and I love you, so she can't possibly be bad."

"Have I ever told you that you are the sweetest guy I know?"

"Oh, once or twice." Ron smiled as he continued getting ready. "And if you think about it, even if they don't like me you will still be ok. You are a really hot girl with a great personality. You will be able to replace me with someone your parents like in no time at all."

"Have I ever told you that you can be the biggest ass I know?" Courtney shook her head and laughed.

"Yeah, once or twice."

-GL-

"So we come crashing through the sky light all dramatic right? Only somehow a piece of glass manages cut my belt and the waist of my pants. Now combine that with getting all tangled up in my jump line, and there go my pants! Kim lands with all the grace in the world, and my pants flutter down next to her. Of course she has no trouble dispatching the hired goons, but it takes her long enough that the bad guy is on his way to escaping. Luckily he made a break for it right as I got myself undone. So I came crashing to the ground, and landed right on top of Dr. Drakken, saving the day."

Ron finished the story with a smile and took a drink of his water. Pat Dugan had his face buried in his hands, trying to keep his laughter under control. Barbara's laughter was much more under control as she tried to keep her husband under control. Courtney, who had heard the story before, gave Ron's leg a loving squeeze under the table as she chuckled softly.

"And that was the graceful debut of Ron Stoppable, teenaged sidekick." Ron said once the laughter had died down. "I'm pretty sure I kept the cargo pant industry afloat, all the pants I had to buy over the years."

"At least you don't have to worry about that anymore." Barbara commented, taking a bite of her salad.

"Yeah that was one of the first things I thought about when I got the GL gig." Ron laughed. "Hard to lose your drawers when they are more or less made of energy."

Silence fell over the table as their waitress approached with their meals. She served everyone, and removed the empty salad bowls. She refilled Ron and Courtney's water and promised to return quickly with new Coke's for Pat and Barbara.

Courtney smiled to herself as she cut a piece of her grilled chicken breast off and ate it. She was starting to find it hard to believe she had actually been worried about this. Pat was treating Ron like he was a long lost friend, not a guy dating his stepdaughter. Her mom had been the quietest of the three, and Courtney knew she was sizing up Ron. Courtney knew all the questions she asked were intended to tell as much about Ron as a person as possible.

There was no doubt in Courtney's mind that Ron impressed them. From the moment they walked into the restaurant Ron was doing everything right. He looked Pat right in the eye and gave him a firm handshake when he introduced himself, and even called him sir until Pat told him to call him by his first name. He was very complimentary of her mother, and even pulled her chair out for her when they sat down.

Courtney wasn't surprised by Ron's display of manners, he had always been a gentleman to her, but she could tell her parents were impressed. And that pleased Courtney.

The hours passed quickly as appetizers led to dinner, and the dinner gave way to dessert. The conversation was constant throughout the entire night and ranged from topics as lighthearted as Ron's pants to the more serious and emotional stories about Ron's mother and the death of Sylvester Pemberton, the original Star Spangled Kid.

"Um, excuse me?" Their waitress asked timidly as she approached the only table in the dining room that was still full. "We're getting ready to close. Not to try and rush you out or anything…"

"Oh my." Barbara commented, looking around the once crowded restaurant. "I think we've over stayed our welcome."

"Yeah, no kidding." Pat glanced at his wristwatch, then back to the waitress. "We're sorry about that, just lost track of time I guess."

"It's no problem," the waitress smiled. "I can take your check for you."

"Of course." Pat and Ron said in unison as they reached for the small brown holder that contained the bill. The two looked at each other as each one grabbed one end of the bill.

"Please, I've got it." Ron said, pulling out his wallet with his free hand.

"Nonsense." Pat shook his head. "This was our idea to have you out, you can't expect us to make you pay for it."

"No, I insist." Ron said firmly. "You've shown me a wonderful time tonight, it's the least I can do."

'Great!' Courtney groaned inwardly. 'They all hit it off, we have a wonderful night, and it's about to come crashing down because they both want to pay the bill. Men!'

"Boys." Barbara said curtly, causing Ron and Pat to break their eye lock and turn towards her. "Ronald, consider this our treat. When we come to visit New York I promise to let you take us to dinner on your dollar. But this time, it's on us."

"Yes ma'am." Ron said softly as a strange look came over his face. "Thank you very much."

"It's our pleasure." Barbara smiled as Pat counted out the right amount of money, including a tip, and gave it to the waitress.

"Shall we then?" Courtney asked as she stood up. She turned to grab her jacket from the back of her chair but was surprised to see Ron holding it out for her. She found herself blushing slightly as Ron helped her into the jacket. She missed the approving glance that her parents exchanged when Ron leaned in and gave her a quick peck on the lips.

-GL-

"So this is the town the world famous Stargirl calls home." Ron commented from the passenger seat of the automobile as Courtney navigated it through the streets of Blue Valley.

"If you take a look out of the left side of the car, you can see the small ranch house where the heroes young friend Mary resides." Courtney said in an even monotone, invoking her inner tour guide. "Our next stop will be the seventy foot bronze statue the townsfolk constructed of the hero known as Stargirl."

"Heh." Ron laughed. "I hope there is a gift shop. I want to get a Stargirl poster to hang over my bed."

"Yeah, because that wouldn't be creepy the next time I stay over."

"You would rather I leave the Starfire poster there?"

"Wait, what? There's no…" Courtney shot Ron a glance, whose response was a dopey grin. "I'll have Kim get Nightwing after you, I hear he used to date Starfire."

"You win!" Ron threw up his hands. "Pretty sure Nightwing could kill me before I could even get a construct brought to life."

Courtney laughed as she maneuvered the car out of the subdivision that Mary lives in and on to the main road. There wasn't much to Blue Valley to show off, and Courtney felt a little embarrassed.

"It's kinda funny, this town." Ron commented, causing Courtney to feel even more embarrassed. "If you added like, one more fast food joint this could be Middleton."

"Really?"

"Oh yeah for sure. Another fast food place, a space center, a mall, a couple museums, and a Smarty Mart, and you've got Middleton to the letter."

"Oh I so hate you right now." Courtney glowered. "As if I wasn't ashamed enough of my town as it is."

"You love me and you know it." Ron said as he leaned across and kissed Courtney on the cheek. "There is nothing wrong with the small town. Most of that stuff I named was actually outside of Middleton, they just had Middleton mailing addresses and used the town's name. Our school wasn't very huge, everybody knew everybody, that kind of thing. I always thought it was good sized until I moved to New York, then it really seemed small."

"New York makes everything look small honey. Here we are."

Courtney turned down a side street that led right into a large parking lot in front of Blue Valley High. She pulled the car into one of the spots closer to the building and put it in park.

"There it is. That building is the only thing keeping me here during the week."

"It'll be over before you know it." Ron commented as he examined the school, which was actually a little larger than Middleton High.

"I can't wait." Courtney said, the excitement evident in her voice. "I'll be out of here before the ink on my diploma dries."

"I share your excitement. I'm looking forward to having you around all the time."

"I will definitely be around all the time." Courtney smiled, shifting the car back into drive and taking it out of the parking lot. "You'll probably get sick of me after awhile."

"Yeah like that's likely." Ron scoffed. "I'm not going anywhere voluntarily, if you want me gone you'll have to do it yourself."

"Gone? Are you kidding me? Not only are you in with me, but also you're in with my folks. You're in for the long haul buddy."

"Parents love the Ron-man as much as the ladies do." Ron gave her a wink. "I have got it goin' on!"

"Oh, boy." Courtney laughed as she rolled her eyes. "Seriously though, I am glad that went so well. I guess you were right, I didn't have anything to worry about."

"Told you so."

The next few minutes of the car ride passed in silence. They were headed back out of town towards the spot she had picked Ron up at so he could head home, hopefully unseen. As much as she wanted him to hang around for a while, maybe even for the night, tomorrow was a school night. Courtney wondered if any of her friends in Young Justice had curfews when they weren't busy saving the world.

Courtney glanced over at Ron, who was absentmindedly staring out the window while drumming his fingers on the armrest. She wondered if something was wrong. She doubted he was just staring off and daydreaming. He had told her once he had to stay focused when he had his ring on because if his mind wandered to far the ring would often give life to his idle thoughts.

"Penny for your thoughts?" She finally asked, reaching over and grabbing the hand that was doing all the drumming, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"I was just thinking…" Ron began, his voice trailing off as he gave Courtney a small, almost sad smile.

"And?" She urged.

"It's your mom. She reminds me so much of my mother."

"Oh, Ron…" Courtney said softly, giving his hand a firmer squeeze, which he returned.

"They even have the same hair style. And then at the end, when Pat and I were arguing over the check…" Ron stopped and stared ahead for a minute before finishing. "The way she said my name Court, it sounded just like her."

Courtney looked over at Ron, but he just stared straight ahead. She tried to think of something to say, something comforting or consoling. The type of thing a good girlfriend would say, she mentally scolded. The truth was, Ron had never really talked much to her about his mom, or even his dad. She knew everything that happened, of course, but he never talked about missing her or related favorite memories of her. She wished he had opened up to her a little more about it, but she knew that people had different ways of dealing with things like that, and she didn't feel it her place to pry.

"I miss her so much sometimes." Ron said, filling the brief silence. "I try not to think about what happened and only remember the good times, but it's always there in the back of my mind. Every time I use my ring, its there, whether I know it or not. And meeting your mom tonight, and seeing how nice she was, and how much she cares for you, man, it just all came to the front."

"I'm sorry." Ron sighed. "I shouldn't be dumping all this on you."

Courtney suddenly slammed on the brakes and jerked the car off the road onto the shoulder, the car bouncing as it left the pavement and skidded to a halt in the gravel on the shoulder. Ron nervously looked behind them as Courtney executed her maneuver, and he was relieved to find no cars behind them.

"Court, what…" Ron was cut off as Courtney undid her seat belt and wrapped him in a tight embrace in one fluid motion. He returned the hug, the warm embrace of someone he loved soothing the ache he felt.

"You aren't dumping on me." Courtney said softly after the couple held each other for a minute or two. She pulled away and looked Ron in the eye. "I want to be there for you Ron. I want you to be able to talk to me about things like this, without you feeling like you are dumping on me, or burdening me with your problems or whatever. I might not always know what to say, but I'll always listen."

Ron said nothing, but the look on his face led Courtney to believe that he understood where she was coming from. He then leaned in and gave her a kiss that told her he knew exactly where she was coming from, and that he appreciated it more then he could vocalize.

-GL-

"You know, this is totally screwing up the start of my weekend!" Stargirl yelled as she dove away from a barrage of energy blasts. As she dove she unleashed a hail of her own energy blasts, which she called shooting stars, from her hand. She turned her dive into a neat summersault as she hit the ground, quickly springing back to her feet.

The shooting stars found their targets, blinding the three goons who were firing on her. Stargirl leveled her cosmic rod at the man in the middle and fired, the energy blast striking him square in the chest, knocking him backwards.

Stargirl winced as her JSA teammate Hawkgirl dispatched of the other two with her mace. The sound of the mace collapsing her attackers faces made Stargirls stomach lurch.

Moments before her stomach had simply been growling as she counted down the minutes until her dinner date with Ron. He was going to meet her here at the mansion after the team meeting was over. The JSA held a brief meeting once a month to discuss team affairs, potential new members, and charity appearances that had been lined up for team members in the coming months. The meeting was just about over when their conference room had been invaded and all hell had broke loose.

"You recoil at the use of such force now little girl, but trust me when I say that one day you will make attacks like that out of necessity."

Stargirl wheeled around to face the person who was addressing her. She narrowed her eyes at Degaton, the time traveling foe of the Justice Society. Degaton grinned at her from his perch on his floating time disc.

"In fact, there will be a time where you use lethal force as a first option. I know, because I've seen it."

"Blow it out your ass Degaton." Stargirl snarled as she fired an energy blast at him. She aimed for the red letter D on the left breast of his jet-black tunic.

"Please Courtney, I saw that coming years ago." Degaton said with a laugh as he easily avoided the blast.

"Could you possibly be any more pompous?" Stargirl asked as she leapt towards him, cocking her fist as she did. "Tell me how the future looks through a black eye!"

Unfortunately for Stargirl, she quickly found out how difficult it is to hit someone with control of the time stream. Her eyes went wide as she passed right through Degaton, her punch connecting only with air. Her momentum on the other side was abruptly stopped as Degaton grabbed the passing girl by her hair and violently slammed her to the ground.

Stargirl yelped as she hit the ground with a thud, the impact causing her to drop her cosmic rod.

"You could try all day, and you will never lay a hand on me little girl." Degaton sneered as he hovered over Stargirl. "Me laying a hand on you though, that's another matter."

Degaton reached down and snatched Stargirl up by the front of her shirt. Degaton regarded the struggling girl for a moment, giving her an almost sad look.

"I almost feel bad for you when you get your heart broken. Of course, it hasn't stopped me from watching it over and over again." Degaton laughed as he backhanded Stargirl across the face. "It's almost as much fun as watching you die."

He reached back to strike Stargirl again, but before he could do so he was jerked backwards as a giant green chain appeared around his waist. He dropped Stargirl, who landed on her feet, but was almost knocked over as Wildcat dashed past her.

"Hold the bastard right there Alan." Wildcat growled to Sentinel, whose construct chain had pulled Degaton away from Stargirl. Wildcat blasted Degaton across the face with a powerful right cross that sent blood and a couple of teeth flying from the villains mouth.

Degaton screamed in agony as Wildcat prepared to deliver another blow. This time however the punch passed right through him and Wildcat almost fell down as he lost his balance.

"Well played Ted." Degaton said, wiping blood from his mouth with the sleeve of his tunic. He phased through Sentinels construct chain and floated in the middle of the room. He glanced around at Stargirl, Wildcat, and Sentinel, then gazed across the room at the other members of the Justice Society, who were winning their battles with Degatons men.

"Well it appears I've worn out my welcome here." Degaton began.

"You would have to be welcomed to wear it out." Stargirl spat.

"Indeed, child. Anyways, I just wanted to drop in to say hello, and see you all together for one last time. The Justice Society has been a worthy adversary over the years, and I wanted to see you all together one last time. I'm sorry to say many of you won't survive our next encounter. Which will be sooner then you may think."

With a curt nod, Degaton and his soldiers vanished.

"Looks like he's gone." Mr. Terrific commented as he glanced around the room. "My T-spheres are reporting no more intruders on the grounds, and Degatons temporal signature is fading from this room."

"Maybe next time those fancy devices of yours can give us a heads up before Degaton comes crashing in here." Hourman said as he pulled his cowl back and ran his fingers through his brown hair.

"It's hard to develop a warning system for someone who seems to have all of time at his disposal. Still, I may be able to develop something with the data my spheres gathered on his temporal energy signature."

"Why'd he have to go and crash our meeting though?" Atom Smasher groaned as he picked up a chair that wasn't destroyed and sat down. "This place is trashed."

Atom Smashers assessment of the meeting hall was correct. Broken chairs were strewn about the place, and the giant round table at which all the members gathered during meetings was tipped on its side, one if its legs broken in half. Burn marks from errant energy blasts lined the floor, walls and ceilings. Several of the team photos that adorned the walls lay on the ground, their frames shattered.

"At least everyone was here to help fight him off." Hawkgirl said. "He brought a small army with him."

"He wanted us all here." Jay Garrick, the original Flash, said grimly. "He wanted us all to hear his message and his gloating."

"Jay's right." Sentinel agreed. "Something bad is coming and Degaton knows it."

"Well, whatever it is, it can't be much worse than this clean up is going to be." Stargirl remarked, earning a much-needed chuckle from the rest of her team.

"Might as well get started." Mr. Terrific sighed. "If anyone finds my notebook, we can discuss the rest of the business while we work."

With a collective yet quiet groan the Justice Society began to move about and begin their cleanup.

"Courtney, let me take a look at that." Dr. Midnight said, approaching Stargirl before she could begin her help with the clean up.

"I'm fine Doc." Stargirl said with a smile that caused her to wince. "Ah, see? I always grimace when I grin."

Midnight smiled as he touched the side of Stargirls face that Degaton had struck. She winced again as Dr. Midnights fingers found the sore spot.

"Well, no fracture, but I'm afraid it's going to swell a little and it might bruise. He caught you pretty good."

"No kidding."

Dr. Midnight opened a compartment on one of his gauntlets and pulled out a medium sized vial. His gauntlets acted as a field medics kit, only more advanced. Stargirl was always amazed at the stuff he pulled out of them, and as Midnight handed her the vial, she wondered if he had something in there for every possible injury.

"Rub some of this on the sore spot." Midnight instructed. "It will help the swelling to go down quicker, and it should help with the bruising, but there will still be some slight discoloration. You should also go clean up the cut on your lip."

Stargirl touched a gloved finger to her lip and was surprised to see blood when she pulled it away. She hadn't felt the blood, but in the heat of the battle one rarely stopped to tend an injury unless it was life threatening.

"Thanks Doc." Stargirl gave the Doctor a bit of a half smile, which was slightly less painful. "I'll do it now, since I have a doctors excuse to get out of this cleaning for a few minutes."

"Wow, you guys sure know how to have a meeting!" A familiar voice called from the doorway.

Stargirl turned and smiled despite the pain. Green Lantern stood in the doorway, surveying the scene as he followed Black Canary and Power Girl into the room. He set the trashcan down he had obviously been recruited to carry and gave everyone a friendly wave.

"Sorry I missed all the fun." Lantern said after everyone called out a hello to him.

"Actually, the fun's just getting started kid." Wildcat said with a smirk.

"Well it does look like you could use a foreman in here." Lantern replied as a construct hard hat appeared on his head, and a clipboard in his hand.

"Everybody's a comedian." Wildcat grumbled.

"Hey you." Stargirl said as she approached GL. "I think dinner is going to have to wait a little bit."

"I can see that." Lantern said turning to face Stargirl. His eyes went wide behind his mask as he noticed the lump on her face that was starting to discolor. "Oh my god, what happened?"

"I've been battle damaged." Stargirl replied. "Ah, ah ah! Don't touch please!"

"Sorry." Lantern pulled his hand away quickly. He then added angrily, "Who was it, and where do I find him. Nobody battle damages my girl and gets away with it."

"Aw, you're so cute when you're vengeful." Stargirl gave GL another odd looking, but painless, half smile. "It was Degaton, he busted in here with a bunch of sci-fi looking shock trooper rejects. He's long gone though."

"That time guy?"

"Yes Ron, the time guy. Don't worry though, Wildcat decked him a good one before he tucked his tail between his legs and ran back into the time stream."

"Guess I should thank Wildcat." Lantern said, obviously disappointed he hadn't been around to help.

"Ain't gotta thank me kid, might be your girl, but she's still our teammate." Wildcat said as he walked by and deposited the remains of a chair in one of the trashcans. "But if ya really got the urge for thankin' me, you can go get me a cold one outta the fridge. Then get your narrow ass back in here and give us a hand cleanin' up."

"You got it champ." Lantern said with a smile. He and Stargirl headed out the doorway to the kitchen and the bathroom, respectively.

"So what did the time guy want?" Inquired Green Lantern as they walked down the hallway that led away from the conference room.

"He was just spouting off some nonsense." Stargirl replied, shaking her head. "He likes to drop by and say weird stuff about watching us die, and tell us about all these disasters that are coming up for us."

"Sounds like an asshole."

"Pretty much."

"So what grim warnings did he have to offer?" Lantern asked. "Did he mention anything about the Yankees winning the World Series this year?"

"No, that must have slipped his mind. He was just babbling about our next encounter. Whatever, he's a tool, enough talk about him." Stargirl replied; remembering the comments Degaton made about her killing, and having her heart broke. She figured it was just Degaton saying things to get inside her head, but she kept the comments to herself anyway.

"Fair enough." Lantern said as they stopped in front of the bathroom. "You, uh, need any help?"

"Thanks, I think I can manage though." Stargirl said. She frowned, which oddly enough hurt less then smiling, as she noticed Lanterns downcast expression. "Ron, don't get down because I got hit. I'm going to get slapped around from time to time, it's the nature of the business."

"I know, I know. But that doesn't mean I have to like it." Lantern sighed. "I don't like seeing you hurt. I feel bad, and that makes me sad. And seeing that bruise, well that makes me mad…certainly not glad."

"Easy on the jokes, lame or otherwise." Stargirl laughed, which caused her to wince in pain. "Now give me a half kiss and go get Wildcats beer."

"Yes darling." Lantern replied as he leaned in for the kiss. Stargirl turned her head to the side and Lantern kissed the good half before heading towards the kitchen.

-GL-

Several hours later Stargirl and Green Lantern zipped across the night sky, heading west out of the city.

Their dinner plans had been changed from a meal at a fancy restaurant to pizza with the rest of the JSA while they cleaned up the mess that was their conference room. During the cleanup Green Lantern had chatted it up with several members of the JSA. The conversations spilled over past the cleanup, out of the conference room and into one of the large lounge areas. Lantern, Hourman, Wildcat, and Atom Smasher talked about everything from fighting evil to baseball for at least two hours.

Much to Stargirls dismay, Green Lantern had been oblivious to her subtle hints to leave. Finally during a lull in the conversation she came right out and said it.

"Well, you ready to go?" She had asked in a tone that suggested it wasn't a question at all.

"Oh, yeah sure of course, if you are." Lantern had responded as the other guys exchanged knowing glances and smirks.

"How's your face feel?" Lantern asked over the rush of the wind.

"Its felt better," Stargirl responded. "How does it look?"

"It looks fine. Nothing could hurt that beautiful face."

Stargirl glared at him.

"It looks like you've got a baseball in your mouth."

"Dr. Midnight said the stuff he gave me would keep the swelling down." Stargirl grumbled. "I'd hate to see what it would look like otherwise."

"It'll be fine in a couple days."

"Yeah, just in time to go home. So we're stuck with a weekend of half kisses."

"Better then no kisses." Lantern offered.

"I suppose." Stargirl shrugged. "Are we almost there?"

"Yeah right around here should be good. We'll go in low for a little bit then stop and change."

Stargirl nodded and followed her boyfriend into a dive. She noticed he reduced his green glow so that it was barely visible to her. If anyone were looking to the sky they would see only the light from her cosmic rod, which she knew looked like a shooting star against the night sky.

Lantern leveled off his descent about twenty feet off the ground. Stargirl followed him as they made their way over some fields and back roads. They began to slow down, and eventually stopped at an abandoned gas station that sat on the outskirts of a neighborhood. In the distance the sky glowed with the light from what Stargirl figured was a medium sized town.

Satisfied the coast was clear, Lantern powered down, his uniform melting away to reveal his street clothes.

"Do you always have to make that look so quick and easy?" Stargirl smirked as she slipped the knapsack off her back. She opened it up and pulled out a sweatshirt and a pair of jeans. She removed her mask and tossed it in the bag, and began pulling the sweatshirt and jeans on over her costume.

"Well I suppose I could always just dissolve my uniform slower, if that would make you feel better." Ron said with a smile, as he watched Courtney try to slide her jeans on over her boots.

Courtney stumbled backwards as she wrestled with the jeans, and was caught by a pair of construct hands. Additional hands appeared and assisted the jeans over the boots, pulling and stretching the pants when necessary.

"Thanks." Courtney said as she buttoned her jeans, fluffed her hair, and grabbed her knapsack.

"No problem, but I keep telling you, Velcro is the way to go."

"I know, but I still gotta look good. It's hard to rock Velcro unless you're a little kid or an old man."

"Good point." Ron said as he led them down the road towards their destination. It wasn't a very long walk and they covered the distance quickly. A large wrought iron gate marked the entrance, and Courtney involuntarily shivered as Ron unlatched the gate and held it open for her.

Once inside Courtney leaned into Ron, who put his arm around her. Ron took them to a specific spot where they stood in silence for several moments. Finally Ron pulled away from Courtney and kneeled down, placing his hand on the top of the tombstone in front of them.

"Mom." Ron said softly. "I've brought someone to meet you. Remember that girl I was telling you about? This is Courtney, my girlfriend."

"Hello Mrs. Stoppable." Courtney said. She knelt down next to Ron and reached into her bag. She produced a single rose and placed it on top of the tombstone. "It's nice to meet you."

Ron smiled and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. Courtney responded by wrapping her arm around his waist and kissing his cheek softly. They remained that way for nearly twenty minutes before they rose and said their goodbyes.

"I think she liked you." Ron remarked as they walked out of the cemetery hand in hand.

"I'm glad." Courtney responded, giving Ron's hand a loving squeeze.

"So am I."

-GL-

A/N- Hey all. I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. I wanted to do one that focused on Courtney and was more from her point of view then Ron's or Kim's. I hope you don't mind, since most of you seem to like her. I know I got away from a couple of the ongoing plot lines, but they will all be back next chapter, and I also planted the seeds for some stuff that will happen at some point down the road here.

Some JSA members made their first GL/KP appearances in this chapter. Jay Garrick is the original Flash, and one of the remaining original members along with Sentinel and Wildcat. Atom Smasher is a relative of the original Atom, and joined the JSA around the time Courtney did. Hourman is Rick Tyler, son of Rex Tyler, who was the original Hourman. Black Canary's mother was also one of the original members of the JSA. The current Canary is a top-notch martial artist who possesses a sonic cry. She is also known for her fishnets and relationship with Green Arrow. Power Girl is…well she's Power Girl, a very complicated character. I don't plan on these characters being major players in this story so I wont go very deep into their background, but they will be around here and there.

One last thing…this fic was nominated for a Fannie this year, and I can't tell you how much that means to me. So I just want to say thanks to those that nominated and voted for me. I've been writing this for a while now, and I appreciate everyone that has stuck with this, despite the erratic updates. So again, thank you very much. Until next time, be well.

-R


	22. To Boldly Go Part 1

Chapter 22

Green Lantern whistled a cheerful melody as he strolled through the hallways of the Justice League watchtower. His whistling echoed off the cold metal walls, mixing with the echoes of his footsteps to create what could only be described as "a racket".

He was making his way from the detention area to the gym. Much to the chagrin of the person walking along side him, Green Lantern had been whistling the entire time.

"Do you mind?" Shego sneered. "That is sooo annoying!"

"Well I could always sing if you don't like my whistling." Lantern replied with a smirk. "Perhaps I could serenade you with a medley of lyrical selections from the public domain."

"Just how much longer is it anyway?" Shego asked quickly, hoping to take Lanterns mind off being annoying for a couple minutes. "Or is this some sort of sick prank by the spandex crowd? You grant me some exercise time and all it amounts to is a brisk walk with the most annoying superhero ever."

"Clearly you have never met Impulse." Lantern muttered. "What kind of people do you think we are anyway? You have a right to a little exercise I guess."

"I'm pretty sure I also have the right to a fair trial with a jury of my peers, but I don't see you guys giving me that anytime soon."

"Well you can't have it all." Lantern shrugged as they stopped outside a metal door with the word 'GYM' written on it in plain black letters. Lantern entered his five-digit code on the keypad and the door whooshed open. "Look at it this way. It's not like you're innocent. You just get to do your time up here in a nicer place, without being bothered by other inmates."

"Yeah, but at least I can break out of regular joints." Shego said sadly as they walked into the gym. She whistled softly as she took in the scenery.

The room was much larger then she expected, easily as large as a football field. The outer wall was a floor to ceiling window, looking out into the inky blackness of space. A row of treadmills and exercise bikes was set up in front of the window. Free weights and benches lined the inner wall. Past those were several odd looking pieces of equipment that Shego couldn't identify. In the very back was a combat training area, with racks of weaponry, training mats, as well as punching bags of all shapes and sizes.

"No wonder everyone looks so buff in their super hero underwear." Shego commented. "This place makes Gold's Gym look like…"

"Bronze's Gym?" Lantern interrupted with a smile.

"..."

"Heh." Lantern chuckled as he got down on one knee in front of Shego. He took the metal device that was encasing Shego's hands and examined it. The manacles enclosed her hands up to the middle of her forearm, and were designed to withstand any energy burst Shego could muster. "Let's see if I remember how to get these things off."

"Are you serious?" Shego rolled her eyes as Lantern fiddled with the manacles.

The door whooshed open and the air crackled with electricity as the Flash zipped in. Shego and Green Lantern both turned to look at him. Flash smirked as he surveyed the scene before him; Green Lantern on one knee in front of Shego, with her manacled hands in his.

"Two questions." Flash grinned. "One, does your girlfriend know about this? Two, do I get to be in the wedding?"

"Stuff it fleet feet." Lantern said, blushing slightly. He finally managed to get the manacles open, and he rose to his feet as Shego rubbed her now free hands.

"Ok, you've got forty five minutes." Lantern told Shego. "And don't forget about that ankle monitor. You make so much as a green spark and that thing will shock you so hard you'll piss your pants."

"You say the sweetest things sometimes." Shego said as she made her way over to an exercise bike.

"So what's up?" Lantern asked the Flash once Shego was out of earshot.

"Nothing." Flash shrugged. "I was just gonna see if you wanted me to keep an eye on her for you. In case she tries something, since your powers don't really jive with hers."

"Does your wife know you are trying to check out our prisoner while she works out?"

"I try to be nice, and then you have to go there!"

"Hey, you started it pal," Lantern laughed. "I can handle it though. I think the wattage on her anklet will be enough of a deterrent."

"Well you never know. She is crazy after all."

"True." Lantern agreed. "I'll be fine, I was going to work out anyways."

"Suit yourself, I'll be around for a little while if you need me." Flash turned to leave, but stopped and turned back to GL. Despite Shego being on the other side of the room, he spoke quietly. "Did you talk to Courtney about next Tuesday?"

"Oh, yeah I did." Lantern responded happily. "She is free that night, so we can make it."

"Awesome! Linda is going to make a roast I think." Flash smiled, referring to his wife. "She's excited, we don't get dinner guests very often. None of my other superhero friends are married or dating someone."

"Glad we can oblige. What time should we be there?"

"Oh, five thirty or six should be fine. Or whenever we get done saving the world that day."

Lantern laughed as Flash gave him a nod and made his way out of the gym. Lantern then made his way over to the free weights in front of the mirror and changed into his workout clothes. His Corps uniform, save for his mask, melted away into a pair of black warm up pants and a green sleeveless shirt.

"Neat trick." Shego said from behind him as he stretched. She grabbed a dumbbell from the rack and sat down on a bench near Green Lantern. She began doing curls as Lantern finished stretching. "Girlfriend huh?"

Lantern quirked an eyebrow at her as he slid weights onto a bar, preparing it for some bench presses.

"What? I can't make small talk?"

"That's kind of personal for small talk."

"No it's not." Shego scoffed. "Not like I'm asking where you like screwing your girlfriend. Wait, it's not Possible is it?"

"No." Lantern grunted as he lifted the now weighted bar off the rack and began a set of bench presses.

"Good." Shego replied, switching the dumbbell to her other hand. She wore a thoughtful expression on her face as she did her next set. Realization dawned on her as she finished. "I know! It's that blonde girl you were with isn't it? The one in the blue, with the star."

Lantern said nothing as he finished his first set of repetitions and re-racked the bar.

"Yep." Shego smirked. "Good for you, she seemed cute."

Lantern shot her a sideways glance as he added more weights to the bar and lay back down on the bench.

"Easy tough guy." Shego said as she grabbed a different set of dumbbells with which to do some butterfly presses. "Don't be so defensive. Like I won't have anything better to do if I get out of here then hunt down your little girlfriend to get revenge on you. I mean, do I really seem like that type of person to you?"

"Do you really want me to answer that?"

"No, I suppose not." Shego frowned. "We're family now though. Brother and sister Lantern. And that's a special bond, family. If you really like this girl, you might marry her someday, and that would make her family as well. Why, she would be like my Lantern in law!"

Lantern racked his weights and sat up, staring at Shego. Shego smiled at him as she continued with her exercise.

"We are not family Shego." Lantern said gruffly. The smile faded from Shego's face.

She finished her set and rose from the bench, replacing the weights on the rack.

"Such hurtful words." Shego pouted. "You know, my brothers said the same thing the first time we fought. The first time we fought after I went evil anyway."

Shego then turned and walked away, heading towards the heavy bags in the back. She left a confused Green Lantern sitting on the weight bench, scratching the back of his head and wondering what in the world Shego was playing at.

Lanterns thoughts were interrupted by a voice over the watchtowers intercom system.

"_Superman to Green Lantern." _

"Lantern here. What's up big guy?"

"_You're needed in the monitor room, right away." _

"Uh, I've got Shego down here with me in the gym." Lantern said, glancing over to Shego, who had stopped to listen to the exchange.

"_Wonder Woman is on her way down to keep an eye on her."_

"Alright, I'm on my way."

"_Hurry. Superman out." _

Green Lantern stood up as the intercom clicked off, his Corps uniform reappearing as he did so.

"Have fun with Wonder Woman." Lantern smirked as he headed towards the door.

"Yeah, whoopee." Shego responded, twirling a finger in the air to emphasize her excitement.

-GL-

'What a perfect day!' Senor Senior Jr. thought to himself as he surveyed the scene around him.

The sun was shining brightly, with nary a cloud in the sky. The pool water sparkled, as the help had just skimmed it. A tall glass of lemonade sat on the table next to his lounge chair, with his favorite bendy straw protruding from the top.

Junior smiled and took off his robe, tossing it carelessly to the ground. The robe had barely settled when a servant came scurrying out of the servants hut, which was located just outside of the pool area. The servant picked up the robe, brushed it off and draped it over the back of a lounge chair close to the one Junior would be using. The servant then hurried back to his hut, neither looking at, nor being acknowledged by Junior.

Junior, now wearing nothing but a red Speedo and sun tan lotion, sat down in his lounge chair and prepared for a long day of baking in the sun. He took a long sip from his lemonade, giggling with delight at the path the liquid was forced to take through his bendy straw.

He closed his eyes and lay back in his chair. His mind wandered as the warm sun washed over him. He thought of his friend Shego, and how it saddened him that he had not heard from her in months. He made a mental note to check his online personal at ; though it was already forgotten by the time his feeble mind moved onto it's next thought. Suddenly Juniors thoughts were interrupted by a terrible and horrifying revelation. The sun was no longer out!

"But how can this be?" Junior cried, opening his eyes in a panic. "There are no clouds!"

Junior looked up to find the sun partially blocked out by an object of some sort. It looked like a small ship, and it was positioned so that it only blocked the area directly above the pool area.

"This is intolerable! Father!"

"Crying for daddy already Junior? The fun hasn't even started yet."

Junior looked up again to see Kim Possible descending from the sun-blocking vehicle on some sort of rope. Kim landed gracefully a few feet away from Junior and disconnected the rope from her belt. With a gentle tug, the rope began to pull itself back up into the ship.

"Aiiiiieeee!" Junior screamed like a little girl, causing Kim to wince and take a step back. "Kim Possible, what are you doing here? And why block out my sun? I have done nothing!"

"No, you probably haven't." Kim admitted. "But you might know someone who has, and I want answers."

"What…what are you talking about?"

"Long story short, Shego tried to kill me. Someone either hired her or informed her pretty well on how to do that", Kim explained. "I want to know who. You and Shego are friends…or something. Not to mention you're rich and somewhat connected in the community that would like to see me dead. So spill Junior, what do you know?"

"You have seen lady Shego?" Junior asked hopefully. "Did she say anything about me?"

"She was trying to kill me Junior! We didn't exactly have time for girl talk."

"Would you tell her to call me? It has been so long, I wish to see her!"

Kim sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose in frustration. She decided that when Nightwing got around to teaching her interrogation techniques she was going to bring him to see Junior. She suspected the results would be hilarious.

"Never mind Junior, is your dad home?"

"Kim Possible!"

Kim turned to face the heavily accented voice that called her name. Senor Senior Sr. made his way out of the house, waving happily with the hand that wasn't holding his cane. Kim excused herself from Junior and headed towards Senior. Her progress was halted as Junior clapped a firm hand on her shoulder.

She slipped his grip and spun around, ready for a fight. To her surprise Junior took a step back and threw up his hands in defense. Then he simply pointed and Kim's ship and pouted.

"Oh for crying out loud." Kim muttered. She reached into one of her pockets and pulled out a small square device that was about the size of a stick of gum. Kim pressed one of the two buttons on it and spoke into the top. "Computer, move ship twenty feet starboard."

The tiny remote beeped, and the ship banked hard to starboard and stopped roughly twenty feet later.

Junior squealed with delight and returned to his lounge chair as Kim rolled her eyes and made her way towards Senior, who was standing near one of the poolside tables.

"Miss Possible." Senior said cheerfully as Kim approached. After a brief handshake Senior took a seat at the table, motioning for Kim to do the same. "To what do I owe this pleasure? It's been far too long."

"Well you've been keeping your nose clean." Kim admitted, taking the seat across from Senior. "I just want to ask you a couple questions."

"I'll be glad to help of course. Would you like something to drink? A mai tai perhaps?"

"No thank you. I'm not twenty one yet anyways."

"We are in international waters my dear." Senior said as he waved towards the servant hut. "Silly laws such as drinking age do not apply here."

"Nevertheless, no designated driver." Kim smiled, pointing towards her ship.

"Always the noble hero." Senior smiled. "But please, tell me how I may be of assistance."

Kim told her story as a servant brought a mai tai and lemonade to their table before heading back to the hut.

"I was just wondering if you had heard anything. Even though you guys have been on the straight and narrow as of late, I assume you are still connected in the community."

"You assume correctly Miss Possible." Senior admitted. "We still receive the monthly newsletter and even keep in touch with a few unsavory types."

"Newsletter?"

"Of course. Keeps everyone up to date on who stole what, who is in jail, stuff like that. Also, there is a crossword and a Marmaduke comic."

"Well that's…interesting."

"You heroes don't have one?" Senior asked, genuinely surprised. "How do you ever organize a team up?"

Kim smiled and took a sip of her lemonade, which was actually quite good.

"So Shego didn't put like, a help wanted ad in this newsletter? 'Trying to kill Kim Possible, need money or Intel', nothing like that?"

"I'm afraid not. All I know is that when word got around of your new friends, many of us were somewhat…discouraged."

"You mean the Titans?" Kim asked. "Discouraged?"

"Yes." Senior said, sipping his drink. "You had foiled every plot ever hatched by your rouges gallery with nothing more then a bumbling sidekick, some teen kung-fu, and a pre pubescent super genius. What chance did any of us stand if you had all the resources of the Titans at your disposal? Only Dr. Drakken was undeterred."

Kim frowned as she considered that statement. It was true, since she had joined the Titans Drakken and Shego were the only members of her rouges gallery to attempt anything.

"Could any of them be working together?" Kim wondered aloud. "Pooling their resources to acquire the information and to hire Shego?"

"I'm fairly certain no one hired Miss Shego. I believe she had planned to attack you regardless of whatever information she received. It's possible someone heard about her plan and decided to help out. Who that could be is beyond me."

"And me." Kim admitted with a sigh. Shego hadn't been lying when she said it was her own idea. Kim wondered if that would help the investigation at all. Now all they had to do was find someone that wanted Kim dead, was way tech savvy, and just came into a good chunk of change.

"Well I should be going." Kim said as she stood up. "Thanks for the lemonade."

"But of course." Senior smiled, rising as Kim did. "I wish I could be of more assistance. I know we have had our differences over the years, but breaking into your home to murder you? I do not approve."

"I'm glad to hear that." Kim smiled. If she would believe that from any of her foes it would be the Seniors. Ron had actually suggested most of their death traps in one way or another.

Kim's plane began to lower itself as she pressed a button on the remote she had once again retrieved from her pocket.

"Oh, and one last thing before you depart." Senor Senior Sr. said as a rope dropped from a hatch on the bottom of the plan. "Please give our condolences to Ron Stoppable. Such a terrible tragedy for that young man to endure."

"I'll be sure to pass those along to him." Kim said solemnly as she attached the rope to her belt. "It's nice of you to say."

"We are villains, not monsters." Senior said sadly. "Be well Kim Possible."

Kim nodded and gave Senior a wave as the rope pulled her into the ship at a brisk pace. The last thing she heard from the island below her as she closed the hatch was Junior calling out to her.

"Kim Possible! Please tell Shego to contact me!"

Kim rolled her eyes and headed towards the cockpit.

-GL-

"Hey gang, what's up?" Green Lantern asked as he entered the monitor room. The Flash, Superman and the Martian Manhunter all turned to face him as he walked in.

"It's a distress call." Flash said, motioning towards the viewing screen they were gathered around.

"Well don't keep me waiting, who's called the Justice League for help today?" Lantern said as he made his way to the view screen.

"Actually, this one's for you pal."

"This distress call isn't for the Justice League." Martian Manhunter explained. "It's for the Green Lantern."

"For me?" Lantern asked, slightly confused. "Why on Earth would someone ask for just me? And more importantly, who on Earth?"

"No one on Earth actually." Superman said. Noticing Green Lanterns confused look he added, "play the transmission J'onn."

The Manhunter nodded and pressed a button on one of the control panels. The screen came to life in the form of static, which eventually crackled and faded into a picture of a creature GL had never seen before.

The alien was humanoid, with dark gray skin. A bright red tuft of hair sat atop its oblong head. It had pointy ears, three eyes the same color as its hair, and near as GL could tell, no mouth. The creature looked like it had been through hell. Dark green blood oozed from several cuts on its face and arms, and its clothes were tattered and stained with blood and dirt.

When the alien began to speak, it was in a deep baritone that led him to believe it was male. It also spoke in pure gibberish. Green Lantern had no idea what the alien was saying, and judging from the looks on the faces of his teammates, they were just as clueless.

"Um, so how do we even know this is a distress signal?" Lantern asked once the transmission ended. "We can't understand it, isn't it possible that we've just received an intergalactic movie trailer or something?"

"The subspace channel this message came in on is one of several reserved for emergency communications." J'onn explained.

"Your predecessor explained that to us many years ago." Superman continued. "It's how alien worlds would call the Green Lantern Corps for help."

"Kind of like the channel nine on a C.B radio." Flash offered. "We try to keep an eye on the ones close enough that we might be able to help. This call is a little out of that range though. Whoever this poor guy is, he boosted his signal strength quite a bit to get a hold of you."

"I see." Lantern said, looking down at his ring. "J'onn, play that back again."

J'onn nodded and pressed play again. This time, when the aliens visage appeared on the screen Green Lantern spoke to his ring, hoping he wasn't about to make a fool of himself.

"Ring, translate that transmission."

Translating…

"Green Lantern, any Green Lantern, if you are still out there, please help us. I am Kayrrk of the planet Dreagy. My planet is under attack. For what reason, and by whom, we do not know. My people are peaceful; we only have limited defense systems, and no major armies. Our resistance weakens with each rotation. Please, I beg of you. Help."

The transmission ended again, leaving the four heroes to stare at the blank screen with grim expressions.

"Ring, where is Dreagy?" Lantern asked after a moment.

_Sector 2814, grid 002_.

"Great Rao!" Superman cried. "That's on the other side of the sector."

"Then I guess I had better get moving." Lantern said as he turned and headed towards the door.

"Lantern wait." Superman said. "Let one of us go with you."

"This is Green Lantern business, not Justice League business Superman. I can handle it."

"You're going to be walking into a war man." Flash said. "Don't you want some back up?"

"I'll be fine." GL assured them. "Besides, who will watch Earth if half the Justice League is on the other side of the galaxy?"

Superman was about to protest further, but was stopped by a telepathic message from the Martian Manhunter.

"Let him go Kal. Have faith in the young man. The Green Lantern Corps once policed the whole universe. If he can show there is still a Green Lantern presence out there, it may deter future threats. But he cannot do that with a Martian or a Kryptonian leading him into battle."

Superman glanced at J'onn and nodded. Superman turned back to GL and regarded him for a moment before giving him a smile.

"I've no doubt you can handle it. Just thought you might want a helping hand. Like you said though, Green Lantern business, so it's your call. Just be careful. And good luck, GL."

"Thanks." Lantern said, returning the smile. "Try to keep things together while I'm gone."

Lantern exited the monitor room and made his way towards one of the many airlocks that were located throughout the hallways of the Watchtower.

"Ring, energy level check."

_Energy level at 56._

"Damn, looks like I need to run home for a recharge first."

Lantern reached the nearest airlock and stepped inside, pressing the decompression button as soon as the door slammed shut. All the breathable atmosphere and gravity was sucked out of the room, followed by the outside door sliding open. Once outside Lantern shot like a rocket towards Earth, all the while trying to remember where he last put his lantern.

-GL-

"Any luck?"

"Nope." Kim shook her head as she exited her Titans craft and stepped down into the hangar. "Senior did reinforce Shego's claim that it was her plan though."

"Hm." Nightwing said as he hooked up a refueling line to the vehicle. "So Shego decides to come after you and someone catches wind of her plan, supplying her with the information necessary to get into the Tower. But the information isn't cheap, so Shego robs a bank to pay for it. Then she gets the info from a middle man, who later turns up dead."

"Sounds about right." Kim nodded as they made their way out of the hangar and into the hallway. "Don't forget about our mysterious phone numbers. I don't suppose anyone has called those yet?"

"Not yet."

They walked in silence to the end of the hallway and boarded the elevator. Once inside Nightwing pressed the button for level ten.

"I'm guessing a lot of money changed hands." He began. "Information like that doesn't come cheap, and Shego didn't have an abundance of money stashed at her hotel room. Not to mention the cost of a hit man to do away with Small Time."

"So we follow the money?" Kim asked.

"Easier said then done I'm afraid."

"But?" Kim said hopefully.

"But," Nightwing smiled, "we might be able to follow what the money was used to purchase."

"Meaning?"

"Well if you just came into a good chunk of change and you wanted to hire someone to do a job, are you going to pay top dollar to get it done, or go bargain basement."

"Probably top dollar." Kim said, starting to see where Nightwing was going.

"That hit on Small Time wasn't done by a street level thug." Nightwing said as the elevator reached its destination. He stepped out and motioned for Kim to follow.

"No sign of a struggle, or of forced entry, even the way everything was removed smacks of someone who knows what they are doing."

"So we start shaking down all the hired guns out there?"

"Maybe eventually. But hopefully it won't come to that."

"Sleuthing before roughhousing eh?" Kim sighed. "You just take all the fun out of it."

"Sorry." Nightwing smiled and shrugged. "I'll check all the flight records in and out of Cleveland, as well as the hotel registers, and see if there are any aliases that match up with our database."

"I learn more about detective work every day."

"Stick with me kid, you'll go places." Nightwing said, giving Kim a pat on the back. "Come in for a second, I've got something for you."

They stopped outside a door, which led to one of the many labs located throughout the tower. There were still several rooms in the tower that Kim had never been in, but she was pretty sure this one was used for research and development. Nightwing entered a code on the keypad and the door swung open.

"Donna told me if Roy ever said that to me that I should definitely not follow him inside." Kim remarked as she followed Nightwing into the lab, which lit up upon their entrance.

"That's probably good advice." Nightwing laughed. "Too bad she didn't give it to your friends."

"What do you mean?"

"Your pal Bonnie was on the visitor log three times last week. Roy signed her in each time."

"Oh my god, are you serious?" Kim asked wide-eyed.

"Yep." Nightwing said as he looked around on one of the tables. The room held several lab tables and workbenches that were cluttered with everything from batarangs and red arrow shafts to pieces of Cyborgs robotic body. "Word to the wise, don't watch the security feed from the whirlpool last Thursday night."

"What? Oh…gross." Kim scrunched up her nose in disgust.

"Don't worry, we have a good filtration system." Nightwing said, turning around with a plain white clothes box that had a single red bow affixed to its lid. "Here ya go. Happy spring."

"A new swim suit and a plane ticket to Cancun?" Kim asked excitedly as she took the box. "You really shouldn't have boss!"

"Well that's good, because I didn't." Nightwing laughed.

Kim smiled and placed the box on a nearby lab stool. She popped the lid off the box and peered inside, gasping slightly as saw the contents.

"Is this what I think it is?"

"Pull it out." Nightwing urged.

Kim reached into the box and pulled out the one-piece suit that was inside. She whistled softly as she held it up by the shoulders and examined it. The suit was black with a red ring on each arm, in between where her bicep and shoulder muscles would be, and there were similar red rings on each leg, mid thigh. The suit zipped up in the front and was marked by a red line that ran up the middle from the belt area to the top of the collar, which was high enough that it would cover Kim's entire neck.

"Here's the rest of it." Nightwing said, bringing over another box, this one slightly larger then a shoe box.

He held it out for Kim, who slung the suit over her shoulder and accepted the new box. The box contained a pair of black boots, a pair of red gloves that were similar to the ones she currently used, and a red belt that had several cargo pockets.

"Is that…is that my very own utility belt?" Kim asked, glancing excitedly from the belt to Nightwing.

"Fully stocked." Nightwing nodded. "The suit is a Kevlar/nomex weave, which means it's somewhat fire resistant and somewhat bulletproof. I incorporated a lot of your equipment into it, like glider wings, and short-range boot thrusters. It's also got…ack!"

Nightwing's rundown of the suits capabilities was cut short as Kim latched her arms around his neck. He smiled and gently returned the hug.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Kim said as she broke the embrace. She held the suit up again and examined it with a satisfied expression. "I was thinking about getting something new, but with everything that's been going on I just haven't had the time!"

"Donna said you mentioned something about it to her." Nightwing said. "And I figured your friend Ron shouldn't be the only one with some new duds. I'm just glad you like it, I know how picky you girls can get."

"I love it." Kim smiled. "I'm gonna go try it on right now!"

Kim gathered up the accessories box and bounded happily out of the room.

"Wait until Monique gets a load of this." Nightwing heard her say as the door closed behind her. He smiled to himself and headed out of the lab. He had a long afternoon of research ahead of him.

-GL-

"Where is that damned thing?" Ron demanded as he rummaged through the bottom of his closet. He tossed laundry; both clean and dirty, over his shoulders in his desperate search.

"I just had it the other day!" He moaned, floating up to search the top shelf of his closet. Finding nothing there but a few board games and a couple of high school yearbooks, he returned to the ground.

He folded his arms and scanned his bedroom. He knew that every second he was here looking for his lantern was another second he wasn't helping the alien race who had sent a distress call to him. He also knew he needed to charge his ring, because he wouldn't be much help if it died halfway to the planet Dreagy.

"Oh!" Ron cried in realization as he looked at his bed. He dove on the ground and scurried underneath the bed. He rooted his way through a variety of textbooks, small storage bins, and a lot of garbage.

Amid the rustling and scraping, not to mention his own cursing, Ron didn't hear the knocking on his front door. Nor did he hear said door swing open as he popped out from under his bed, proudly clutching his lantern.

"Finally." Ron sighed, holding the lantern in front of him with his left hand. He pressed the ring on his right hand into the lantern and recited the oath of the Green Lantern Corps.

"In brightest day, in blackest night, no evil shall escape my sight. Let those who worship evil's might, beware my power, Green Lanterns light!"

The lantern glowed brightly and flashed green as Ron finished the oath. He pulled his ring away, which also glowed brightly with a full charge.

Ron turned to set his lantern down in a place he would remember, but stopped when applause came from the doorway of his bedroom. His stomach filled with dread as he turned around. Other than his mask he was in full uniform, powering up, and someone was cheering him on from the doorway.

"Bravo! Author, author!" Courtney cried, clapping her hands together. "That's probably the second most amazing thing I've ever experienced in this bedroom!"

Ron smiled as he exhaled a sigh of relief.

"My heart skipped a beat when I heard that clapping." Ron laughed as he placed the lantern on the top shelf of the closet next to the board games.

"Well I got your voicemail, and it sounded pretty urgent." Courtney said. "So I came right over. Besides, how many people have a key to your apartment?"

"Good point. Look I have to go."

"Wow, great, glad I came over."

"I just wanted to say goodbye to you, in person."

"Whoa cowboy, slow down. I don't know if I like how ominous that sounds." Courtney frowned. "Where exactly are you going?"

"Alien distress call, other side of the sector." Ron explained hurriedly. "They are being attacked, and I don't know when I'll be back."

"I'll come with you." Courtney said without hesitation. "I've got my stuff with me, lets rock."

"Wait, what? No, no, no." Ron shook his head, holding his hands out in front of him. "This is Green Lantern business. You know, in space."

"Yeah, the final frontier and all that. Big deal. You can't go by yourself."

"I can, and I will!"

"But I don't have anything to do. I'm on spring break and I was…"

"No." Ron said, surprising them both with his firmness. Softly, he added, "Court, if this were something on Earth I would take you in a heartbeat. But the last time I checked you couldn't breathe in space. I can protect you with my ring, but if something happens to me, you're screwed. And I'm probably going to need all my ring's energy just to get there, fight, and get back. You understand right?"

"Yeah…"

"You're not mad?"

"Why would I be mad? I would certainly not be mad because I have a week off of school and was planning on spending it with my boyfriend, and certainly not because he won't let me come along to help just because of a silly thing like not being able to breathe in space. " Courtney folded her arms across her chest and glared at Ron.

"Yeah that breathing in space thing, just a tiny setback." Ron smirked, holding his hand up with his thumb and index finger a half an inch apart. He crossed the small distance between them and placed his hands on the sides of Courtneys upper arms. He gave them a gentle squeeze as he spoke softly." I have a job to do Court. I have to leave whether you are happy about it or not, but I would prefer leaving a happy girlfriend behind, and not an angry one."

Courtney looked into Ron's eyes for a moment before sighing and leaning into him, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist.

"Oh, I'm not mad." Courtney sighed into Ron's chest. "I just like busting on you."

"Good, because I don't want to go fight evil space aliens knowing the love of my life is at home hating me."

"Never." Courtney smiled. "Just be careful."

"Always." Ron replied, leaning down to kiss Courtney. They held a long kiss, which seemed way to short when they finally separated.

"Go save the universe space cop." Courtney said softly, pulling away from their embrace.

Ron grinned as his mask appeared on his face.

"Love you."

"Love you too." Courtney replied as Ron made his way out of the bedroom. He gave her one last look and a smile before he shot out of the kitchen window.

The Green Lantern rocketed upwards, past the tops of skyscrapers, through the clouds, through the last layer of breathable atmosphere and eventually out into the darkness of outer space.

"Lets go to Dreagy." Lantern said, glancing over his shoulder at Earth. He felt the ring adjust his course, and he was soon shooting through space at a speed few men would ever know.

Back in Ron's apartment, Courtney shivered despite the warm spring breeze blowing through the open window. She closed the window, then walked into the living room and sat down heavily on the couch. She touched her lips and sighed. She couldn't escape the feeling of finality that had come with that last kiss.

She mentally scolded herself for referring to it as 'that last kiss'. Still, she couldn't shake that feeling, just as she couldn't shake Degaton's words to her, ringing in her ears.

"I almost feel bad for you when you get your heart broken"

-GL-

"So…"

"So…"

Shego and Alan Scott stared at each other across Shego's cell. Shego sat on her bunk, legs curled beneath her, while Alan sat in a construct easy chair. The time of the visit was approaching twenty minutes and so far all it had amounted to were several awkward glances and a couple of failed attempts to get a conversation started.

"Alright." Shego finally said. "If I'm your daughter, and we share the same abilities, how come you can make all the fancy creations like the other Lantern, and all I can do is fire off energy blasts."

"Well have you ever tried to do anything else?"

"No, not exactly."

"Try to make something." Alan offered. "Something small, like a baseball. Just think about it, focus your energy into it, and will it to life."

"Will it to life?" Shego asked, clearly skeptical.

Alan nodded and held out his left hand. A construct baseball appeared in it, and then disappeared.

Shego frowned and held out her hand. She focused on creating a baseball, on giving an object life. A tiny green flame flashed out of Shego's palm, and then vanished. Sweat beaded on her forehead as the flame ignited again, this time staying lit.

"That's it." Alan said softly, leaning forward. The flame in Shego's hand contracted and distorted itself until it resembled a sphere. The sphere got tighter and more focused, and seams began to line the outside of it. Then it popped, exploding green energy outwards.

Shego exhaled loudly and leaned back against the wall of the cell. Her breathing was heavy as she wiped her forehead with the sleeve of her jump suit.

"Damn." She gasped, "You guys make that look so easy."

"Years of practice." Alan smiled. "I'm sure firing those energy blasts of yours didn't happen over night."

"No." Shego admitted. "What about Green Lantern? He hasn't been at it very long at all."

"Well, the Guardians only give their rings to people who possess great will power."

"And what about you?" Shego asked. "You didn't get your ring from some magical moon men?"

"My power is rooted more in magic." Alan explained. "It's actually a part of me now, not just contained in my ring. It's why I'm able to pass the abilities on to you and Jade."

"Is that why you look like you're about forty years old, when you should be about eighty? Because of magic?"

"Amazing thing, magic." Alan nodded, adding a shrug. "A lot of people have tried to figure it all out, not many people actually have."

Shego nodded and looked down at her hands. Magic, who knew? Though she honestly wasn't sure if that was any more ridiculous than her previous status quo of being energized by a meteor.

"Now let me ask you something." Alan said, interrupting Shego's thoughts. "Why evil?"

"Because being good doesn't pay." Shego replied without missing a beat. "I tried it, didn't dig it."

"Your brothers still stand for justice."

"My brothers are a bunch of half-wits." Shego spat. "I could never figure out how we were related, but I guess that's no mystery anymore."

"Look, nothing against all you guys that fight the quote, unquote, good fight, but your moral code is not for me." Shego continued after a moment. "My brothers oozed truth, justice, and the American way, and that is so not me. You wanna know what started the wedge between us?"

Alan nodded.

"I was shopping in downtown Go City, ok?" Shego sighed, leaning forward as she uncurled her legs, letting them dangle off the edge of the bunk. "I've got some bags full of new clothes, walking down the street, when the front of this bank explodes."

"So of course my idiot brothers come running, ready to do battle with one of our lame villains, I don't even remember which one of those losers it was now. But anyway, without me they are, as usual, totally lost. Getting slapped around by the henchmen, I mean it was really sad when I wasn't there."

"So being the good sister, I run in to help, and eventually everything gets squared away. Whatever. But in the process, my shopping bags, not to mention the outfit I was wearing, get totally trashed. Now the owner of the bank, he offers to pay for the stuff. Any guesses on what my brothers had to say about that?"

"We aren't in this for reward?" Alan offered with a slight grin. "Your thanks are payment enough?"

"Pretty much." Shego huffed, matching Alan's grin. "I didn't see what the big deal was. My stuff got trashed, the guys obviously got money to spare. It's a noble stance, but I don't get off on helping people. I'm the one putting my ass on the line, I want something more then a 'gee thanks' from some guy who can't take his eyes off my chest."

"That's why you did mercenary work? For the money?"

"Yeah, of course." Shego said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Why else does anyone do mercenary work? People that just want to kill people become murders and psychopaths. The people that become mercenaries are the people that don't take any particular joy from killing, but don't mind doing it to pay the bills."

"Interesting point of view I guess." Alan admitted. He hadn't expected this much out of Shego, not on their first real visit anyway. He decided to try his luck. "So why join up with Drakken?"

Shego laughed and shook her head.

"I have no idea. I've been asking myself that same question for a long time." She said, still laughing. "Maybe I saw something of a kindred spirit in him. Someone rejected by his peers because of his ideals. Maybe I thought he might actually be capable of taking over the world."

"Of course it became pretty obvious that wasn't true." Shego said, her laughter stopping. "I probably should have left."

"Why didn't you?"

Shego stopped, staring at Alan as she considered the question. Kim Possible was the answer. It's been about her since the day they first exchanged blows, Shego thought. She had never met anyone who was her physical equal, yet Kim had been that in every way. Just once Shego had wanted to best her. To see Kim lying broken at her feet, begging for mercy. That was why Shego stuck around, but she wasn't going to give Alan the satisfaction of knowing that.

"I don't know." Shego lied. "But I think this little therapy session has gone on long enough."

"Of course." Alan said, realizing his luck had run out for the day. He rose, the construct chair vanishing as he did so. "Same time next week?"

"I don't think I'll be going anywhere." Shego frowned. "Maybe next week we can talk a little more about you, pops. Talk some superhero one night stands, perhaps?"

"We'll see." Alan said evenly as he headed for the door. "Goodnight Shego."

Shego simply waved as Alan exited the cell. Once he was gone Shego lay down on her bunk and stretched. She positioned herself on her side, resting her head on her arm. She held her other hand out in front of her, and began to practice making construct baseballs.

-GL-

"We totally suck." Monique declared, dropping her slice of pizza to her plate and crossing her arms. She glanced around the corner booth at Draimans and gave her friends a look of disgust. Each of the girls stared back at Monique with their own unique look of confusion.

"Speak for yourself." Bonnie said. "I for one do not suck."

"Yeah, I bet you don't," Kim scoffed.

"Excuse me, K?"

"I've seen the guest sign in sheet Bon." Kim smirked. "I'm just gonna go out on a limb and say sucking is…"

"Oh you do not want to go there!"

"I would prefer if neither of you went there, actually." Courtney remarked.

"Yeah I'm with her." Monique agreed. "Besides, you two are missing the point."

"There was a point?" Kim raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, there is a point. The point is, it's spring break and we have no plans."

"So?" Bonnie asked. "I've got a lot of work to catch up on."

"Wouldn't a vacation be more fun if we were twenty one anyways?" Courtney asked, earning nods of agreement from Kim and Bonnie.

"Look, I'm not talking about a big vacation." Monique sighed. "Like any of us have the bread for that anyway."

"The bread?" Courtney asked softly.

"That doesn't mean we can't have fun in the city though, right?" Monique asked hopefully. Her friends responded by mumbling incoherently and glancing around at each other.

"Wow, I didn't realize I was at my Grandmothers sewing club." Monique groaned. "Last time I checked we were four hot young specimens of the female persuasion. Three of whom are single, and the fourth has a boyfriend who is off doing god knows what."

"Working." Courtney corrected, casting a sideways glance at Kim, who smirked.

"Same thing only different, but it means you're free."

"I think I know where this is heading." Bonnie said, starting to feel Monique's sales pitch.

"Exactly!" Monique grinned, pointing at Bonnie, who sat across from her. "A night on the town!"

"I'm in." Bonnie said quickly.

"What happened to all that work you have to catch up on?" Kim asked.

"It can wait." Bonnie shrugged. "One night of not working on it isn't going to destroy me."

"Come on you two, it'll be great." Monique urged, sensing Kim and Courtney's reluctance. "Kim, when was the last time you were out?"

"Well it was the blind date you set me up on."

"And wasn't that fun?" Monique smiled.

"You set me up with a guy in a relationship!"

Courtney chuckled slightly as she was taking a sip of her drink. The laughter turned into a small coughing fit.

"At least we tried." Bonnie shrugged as she patted Courtney on the back.

"Well at a club there are bound to be some single guys." Monique offered hopefully, then for good measure she added her version of the puppy dog pout.

"Oh, fine!" Kim said, raising her hands in defeat. "I was just going to stay in and see if Nightwing were around to study with anyway."

"Well we could do that instead." Bonnie grinned.

"Oh, knock it off will you." Kim rolled her eyes.

"It all comes down to you." Monique said, turning to Courtney, who had finally stopped coughing. "Either we all go, or none of us go. All for one, and all that jazz."

"Gee, no pressure there. I dunno about this though," Courtney said sheepishly. She glanced at the other three girls, who were all looking at her as if the fate of the world depended on her answer. It was a look she had actually seen before, at times when the fate of the world did literally depend on her. "I mean Ron…"

"Ron won't mind." Bonnie said, dismissing her concern with a wave of her hand. "You'll be going out with the three people he trusts the most in this world."

Courtney, Monique and Kim all looked at Bonnie with raised eyebrows and cocked heads.

"Alright, alright. You'll be going out with the one person he trusts most in this world, and Monique and I." Bonnie corrected.

"Yeah, it's not like we are gonna let a bunch of sleaze ball guys crawl all over you." Monique said. "We are just going to have a good time, not hook up."

"Speak for yourself." Bonnie said in a singsong voice.

"Alright, I'm in." Courtney sighed. If nothing else, it would maybe take her mind off Ron's space adventure, at least for a night.

"Great!" Monique exclaimed. "Meet at our place around eight?"

"Sure."

"Sounds good."

"It's gonna be a blast." Monique assured them as she slid out of the booth. "Let's go get ready Bon."

"Coming Mon." Bonnie said, following Monique out of the booth. "See you guys tonight."

"Bye." Kim and Courtney said in unison.

Monique and Bonnie hurried out of the pizza shop, and Kim began scooting her way out of the booth before Courtney stopped her.

"Hey, um, do you think maybe I could borrow something to wear?" Courtney asked. "I didn't really bring any club attire with me. Not that I really know what that is, seeing as I have never been to one."

"Sure no problem." Kim said. She knew Courtney couldn't ask Bonnie and Monique, because as far as they knew Courtney lived in the city full time. "Just come over to the Tower around six or six thirty."

"Great." Courtney smiled, following Kim out of the booth and to the trashcan, where they deposited their plates and drinks. "Thanks a lot."

"It's no big."

-GL-

Green Lantern came to a stop just outside the orbit of Dreagy. The planet was small, not much larger than Earths moon. Lantern looked around and furrowed his brow. He expected to stumble upon some sort of space battle, or at the very least a warship in orbit.

"Are we in the right place ring?"

_Affirmative._

Lantern shrugged and shot towards the planet. A feeling of dread crept into the back of his mind. What if he was too late? He pushed the doubts from his mind as he broke into the planets atmosphere.

He stopped his descent once he could get a clear visual of the ground below him. His heart sank as her surveyed the destruction below him. GL found himself above the remains of a sprawling metropolis. Skyscrapers were blasted in half, their top halves either disintegrated or laying on top of smaller buildings. Several city blocks were gone altogether, replaced with massive craters. Thick black plumes of smoke rose from buildings where fires had burned, and many fires still raged. The faint sounds of energy blasts and screams drifted up to Lanterns ears.

For the first time in a long time Green Lantern wondered if he might be in over his head. The scene below him was literally a war zone. He had no idea where to start.

Another scream shook Lantern from his thoughts. He decided that would a good a place as any to start. He zipped down to the remains of the city and focused on the scream.

He found the source of the screaming in between two burnt out buildings. An alien similar to the one in the distress call was backed into a corner by a pair of giant creatures. Lantern assumed this alien was a female, given her high-pitched voice and long red hair. The female clutched two smaller aliens to her chest, both of which were crying hysterically.

Lantern dropped down heavily behind her attackers. The pair turned around and looked down at the Green Lantern. They each stood roughly ten feet tall, and were dressed in dark green body armor. They each wore helmets with clear blast shields covering their faces. These aliens had orange faces with yellow eyes and large mouths filled with pointed teeth. They looked almost reptilian to GL, though he didn't notice any scales.

The duo looked at each other for a moment, then back to GL. In unison they leveled their laser rifles at him.

"Ring, translate this into something they will understand." Lantern said. "Put the weapons down. This planet is under the protection of the Green Lantern Corps."

One of the aliens broke out into his version of laughter, which sounded like a cross between a wet, hacking cough and a belch.

"There is no Green Lantern Corps anymore." The second alien growled. "This planet is under the rule of Emperor Bzzarg. Surrender or be destroyed."

Lanterns response was an energy blast that knocked the rifle out of his hands. The first alien stopped laughing and fired a blast at GL, who deflected it with a construct shield. He then fired another quick blast to disarm Bzzargs soldier.

"As I was saying," Green Lantern began, floating up so he was face to face with the soldiers. "This planet is under my protection. So you go tell your emperor buzz kill…"

Lanterns threat was cut off as the alien soldiers head exploded, covering Lantern in an orange, sticky fluid.

"What the fu-ah!" Lantern cried, dodging the spray from the second solider, as his head exploded as well. Lanterns eyes widened as he noticed the female he had swooped in to save holding one of the energy weapons dropped by the soldiers. Her expression was angry and determined as she held the weapon in one hand and cradled her two children in her free arm.

"Green Lantern." She said, her expression softening as she turned towards GL. "It is good that you have come. Please follow me."

"What the hell are you doing?" Lantern demanded as he floated back down to the ground and followed the woman. "Those men were unarmed! I had that under control!"

"What am I doing?" The woman spun around, her three eyes narrowed at the Green Lantern. "I'm fighting a war. Look around you Earthman, the time for threats and bravado has long since passed."

She turned back around and resumed walking. Lantern hesitated for a moment but then caught up and fell in step beside her. He was now totally confident he was in over his head.

"Sorry." Lantern said as they made their way through streets that were lined with debris. "Just trying to get a handle on the situation."

"As I said, the situation is war." The woman replied in a voice slightly less harsh. "This was once our greatest city, now it is a graveyard. It was the first city that the Trapoans attacked, and it was the first to fall. The patrols here are few now, because the war rages on the other side of the planet."

"We make our base in the catacombs beneath this city." She continued as she led Lantern through destroyed streets, over and around piles of rubble. "The catacombs used to house our main mode of transportation, but that mode was abandoned decades ago. The catacombs sat empty and forgotten until now. Now they are our homes, and our biggest strategic advantage."

"I'm guessing Bzzarg doesn't know about them?" Lantern asked, earning a nod from his guide. "I don't suppose you have a name?"

"I am called Chevoot. In here."

"Nice to meet you Chevoot." Lantern said as he squeezed through a doorway that was almost completely blocked by debris. "So how long ago did you send your distress signal? I came as soon as I got it."

"We sent it as soon as Bzzarg began his attack, approximately fourteen cycles ago." Chevoot said. She knelt down and opened a hatch on the floor of the building they were in. "In."

Lantern nodded and dropped down into the hatch. A ladder went from the hatch down to the floor, which was a distance of about one hundred feet. Lantern decided to fly down, and made a construct platform for Chevoot to ride on.

"Fourteen cycles? That's like…"

One week, Earth time…

"My god." Lantern breathed as the ring answered his question. "All this destruction in that little time?"

"As we said in our communiqué, we are a peaceful society." Chevoot said sadly. "Bzzarg knew that, it is why he chose to start his military campaign here."

"It ends here too." Lantern growled. "I just wish I had been able to get here sooner."

"The fact that you are even here at all is a gift. Many of my people did not believe there were any Green Lanterns left. Word of the Green Lantern Corps demise has spread throughout the universe, and it has emboldened tyrants like Bzzarg."

Lantern grimaced as they landed on the stone floor of the cavern. Other intergalactic police forces had tried to fill the void left by the Corps, but they had all failed. Even those headed up by surviving Green Lanterns, like the Darkstars, had failed. They all lacked the resources and manpower needed to police the entire galaxy. GL knew he wouldn't be able to do it all himself, but he had to make more of an effort, at least in his sector. Just being seen would be a start. If people knew there was still a Green Lantern around it might act as a deterrent of sorts.

Lantern followed Chevoot to the far side of the cavern where a smaller tunnel branched off. She removed a piece of rock from the wall to reveal a control panel. She pressed a button on the panel and spoke into it.

"Chevoot requesting a skid to platform alpha twelve. Password uni five eight cron one seven."

"Password and voice print accepted." A deep voice responded over the intercom.

"Send a fast one Krix. I've got something important with me."

"It's on its way Che'." Krix replied before the line went silent. Chevoot replaced the panel and made sure it wasn't visible. She squatted down and let the two small children out of her arm. The children, who had been remarkably quiet up to this point, scampered off and began chasing each other around the cavern.

"Cute kids." Lantern remarked. "Well behaved too."

"Fear is an excellent teacher." Chevoot said. "When you see your classmates ripped from their hiding spots and killed because they cried out…well, a child learns self control."

"I…I'm sorry."

"Don't be. If someone else's child had to die so my children learn to survive, so be it."

"I'm not that cold." Chevoot added softly, realizing how her previous statement sounded. "My children are all I have left. My husband and my brothers are all dead. Do you know what I was doing fifteen cycles ago? I was a school teacher."

Chevoot looked at the ground and wiped a tear away from her middle eye. Lantern reached over and gave her arm a gentle squeeze.

"I'm sorry for everything you've lost." Lantern said softly. "But your children will be safe, and I will end this war. No matter what it takes."

To be continued...

-GL-

Hey everyone, hope you enjoyed the chapter. The next chapter should be along shortly, I was going to do this whole thing in one chapter but it got to be pretty long, and I realized I hadn't updated in awhile so I cut it in half. The planet Dreagy is my own creation, as are all of its inhabitants, invading or otherwise. I wanted to get Ron out there in space, because as Courtney pointed out, he is essentially a space cop. Later on down the road I'll probably have him interact with some established DC alien planet types. Tune in next time as Ron fights a war and Kim and the girls hit the club scene. The title is a Star Trek reference obviously, but bonus points to yourself if you noticed it applies to Courtney as well as Ron.

Also, as usual, everything except the aforementioned Dreagy is property of DC comics. No profit was made from this story. This story cannot be reproduced without the express written consent of ABC , Reed Stoppable, and the National Football League. Haw.

-R-


	23. To Boldly Go Part 2

Chapter 23

"So this is clubbing huh?"

"That it is, Courtney, that it is." Kim responded with a smile. Kim and Courtney sat at a table together and gazed out at the dance floor. The first stop on Moniques club tour was called Rumors, and it was one of the hottest new night clubs in town. The place was filled to capacity, and there were at least twice that many people standing outside hoping to get in.

"Will you let me know when the fun begins?" Courtney asked. She had to shout to be heard over the music, despite the fact that they sat across from each other at a table that would barely hold one dinner plate.

Kim laughed and slid her chair closer to Courtney so they could talk easier.

"Are you trying to tell me it wasn't fun watching Monique give the bouncer a fake phone number so he would let us in?" Kim asked with a grin. "Or getting Bonnie to take those two guys out on to the dance floor so we could have their table?"

"I think Bonnie is enjoying the guys more then we are enjoying the table." Courtney commented, pointing out onto the dance floor. Kim looked to the dance floor and shook her head when she noticed Bonnie sandwiched in between the two guys, dancing away.

"You wanna make a bet on how many bars we make it to before Bonnie leaves us to go home with a guy?" Kim smirked as Courtney laughed. "I'll say the over/under is three bars."

"You still don't like her do you?" Courtney asked when she stopped laughing. "Ron told me you two didn't get along in high school."

"That's a bit of an understatement about high school." Kim said. "No, I like Bonnie, she's just a fun target. Besides, she deserves all the ribbing she gets after the way she treated Ron in school. Even if she does act like an actual human being now."

Courtney opened her mouth to respond but stopped when Monique walked up to the table. Monique stood in front of the table and regarded her friends with a look of disgust.

"One of the bouncers asked me to tell you two to settle down, or they are going to have to throw you out of here."

"Well that would be a shame." Kim responded sarcastically.

Monique was about to respond when a muscular fellow snuck up behind her and wrapped an arm around her waist. With his free hand he reached over her shoulder and held a plastic drink cup in front of her. Monique accepted the drink and looked over her shoulder at her suitor. Apparently satisfied with his appearance, Monique allowed herself to be led back out onto the dance floor.

"Duty calls!" Monique tossed over her shoulder to her friends.

"So where is Ron actually at tonight?" Kim asked. "Monitor duty?"

"No, he is in outer space somewhere." Courtney replied. "Alien planet."

"Really? What for?"

"He got a distress call from some planet that was being attacked, so he went to help them out."

"He went by himself?" Kim asked, concern creeping into her voice. "Why didn't you go with him?"

"I wanted to, but he wouldn't let me." Courtney said defensively. "He pulled the whole 'you can't breathe in space' card on me. Which is kind of hard to argue with considering I can't breathe in space."

"He's gotten pretty good at using excuses to do things on his own." Kim muttered. It still felt strange getting information about Ron from another person. "How long is he going to be gone?"

"He didn't know." Courtney shrugged. It surprised her a little bit that Ron hadn't informed Kim of his trip, but he was in a hurry when he left. Courtney hoped it wouldn't make Kim mad; they were getting along well with each other, despite a little initial wariness on each side.

"You don't seem to be too worried."

"Oh, I'm plenty worried." Courtney assured her. "I'm just trying to keep my mind off of what he is doing. When I think about it too much I just try and remind myself that he has the most powerful weapon in the universe at his disposal."

"I guess there's that." Kim agreed.

"You know what though?" Courtney asked, a grin spreading across her face as she found a way to change the subject.

"What's that?"

"I think I'll take the under." Courtney said, nodding her head towards the dance floor.

Kim followed Courtneys gaze and laughed. Bonnie was now dancing with only one guy, but their dancing mainly consisted of kissing and groping each other.

"I think that's what they call a safe bet." Kim remarked. The girls shared a laugh, a welcome distraction from their concern for Ron.

-GL-

Green Lantern and Chevoot stepped out of their transport car into an enormous chamber. The walls and ceiling of the chamber were all white, though it had faded somewhat with time. It was very brightly lit; enough to make one forget the station was underground.

On the way there Chevoot had explained to Green Lantern that this had once been the central hub of their underground transportation system. Every tunnel eventually led back to this station. Lantern had noticed the setup was much like the subway system in New York. The main differences being the sheer size, this system serviced nearly the whole planet as opposed to just one city, and the cars themselves. Where the New York subway was rail based, the Dreagian system used anti gravity technology to zip around.

The scene in the cavern was a sad one. Most of the landing platform had been transformed into a shantytown of sorts. Some people had set up tents, others had constructed make shift lean-to's to give themselves a little privacy. Those were the exception, Lantern noticed. Most people had nothing more then a section of floor to call their own.

"We've set up something of a command center over here." Chevoot said, motioning for GL to follow her. They made their way through the shantytown and Lantern noticed many people pointing at him and whispering as he went by. Some people broke out into full smiles.

"You've given these people hope." Chevoot said, noticing the people's reaction. "It's something they have not had in quite a while."

"I hope I don't let them down." Lantern commented, being careful not to trip over a group of young children. They ran around laughing and playing, too young to understand what was happening to their world Chevoots children, who had been quietly following their mother, tugged on her pant leg and looked up at her hopefully. Chevoot gave them a nod, and the children gleefully bounded off to join the others.

"As do I," Chevoot nodded in agreement. They crossed the remainder of the platform and they stopped outside a nondescript white door on the far wall. She knocked twice and the door swung open after a moment. The atmosphere inside the room was a stark contrast to the one on the platform.

Several men and women bustled about the room, which was only about the size of a racquetball court. City maps hung from one wall and two men drew lines and symbols on them. The far wall was lined with computers, radios and monitors. Amid all the chaos one man walked calmly from station to station, group to group. He would examine the latest markings on the map and then make his way over to the communications station, giving the radio operator instructions to relay to men in the field.

"That's Commander Tramet. Before the war he was in charge of our police. There wasn't much crime to police, but the Commander has shown great aptitude for battlefield strategy." Chevoot explained. Lantern nodded and scanned the room, looking for Kayrrk, the fellow from the distress call. He spotted him on the far wall, working a radio of some sorts. Kayrrk noticed Lantern, who gave him a friendly smile and a wave. Kayrrk returned the wave, his face lighting up and a large smile spreading across his face as he did so.

Tramet had also noticed Green Lanterns presence and smiled as well. He finished telling something to a younger female and made his way over. He stopped in front of Chevoot and held his left hand out in front of him. The palm of his hand faced Chevoot, and all six of Tramets fingers were spread apart. Chevoot responded by extending her right hand and placing it against Tramets, they followed this by bowing slightly towards each other.

"Green Lantern." Tramet said as he turned towards Green Lantern and held his hand out again. Lantern mimicked the response Chevoot had given, including the bow.

"Commander." Lantern said after the greeting. "I came as soon as I got your message."

"I'm glad." Tramet said. "Many of the people in the room thought it was a waste of time. They doubted there was a Green Lantern left in the universe. But my communications officer was very persistent. He made the necessary adjustments to our equipment to broadcast our distress signal to you. When this nightmare is over I'll put Kayrrkup for a medal."

"He did an excellent job tracking me down, I'm the only Green Lantern left I'm afraid."

"A shame." Tramet shook his head sadly. "Such a mantle to bear for one so young."

"I get by." Lantern shrugged.

"I imagine you do." Tramet smiled. "I hate to get right to it, but we could use you on the battlefield."

"That's what I'm here for." Lantern said. "Where do I start?"

"Take this." Chevoot said. She had walked away while Tramet and Lantern talked and now returned with a small device that resembled a PDA. She took Lanterns left hand and affixed the device to his gauntlet. "This will act as a map, as well as keep you in touch with this command center. A hot battle zone will appear as a red blip on the map."

"Thanks." Lantern said as he made sure the device was secure. "Can I access the surface from this chamber?"

"No, we sealed the entrances to keep the people safe." Tramet said. "You'll have to take one of the tunnels."

"Here, watch." Chevoot said. She grabbed Lanterns wrist and pressed one of the buttons on the device. The screen switched to a map of the tunnel system. "You can use this to find your way out, and back. Press that button there to return the screen to your surface map. That button there will open the communications channel."

"Also, if that device becomes unattached from your arm, it will explode." Tramet added. "We cannot risk the enemy gaining those maps."

"Understood." Lantern said with a nod. "Well, call me if you need anything."

Lantern headed out of the room, leaving a very relieved Commander Tramet behind.

-GL-

By the time the girls reached their third stop of the night, Kim and Courtney had actually begun to have fun. Courtney had initially been skeptical as Monique described the thrill of the 'pub crawl'. Kim was more concerned with giving up their table, which her and Courtney had held on to for the entire hour they were at Rumors. Her worst fear had been realized at the second bar, The Parched Parakeet, which had no tables at all. This had forced Kim and Courtney to stand, which eventually led to some dancing, and finally some fun.

The girls were currently at Larry's Lounge, which, despite the unassuming name, was a very high-class nightclub. It was the type of high-class nightclub that had a guest list and a months long waiting list to get on said list. The club was an older two-story building and clearly a lot of money had gone into its remodeling and transformation into a nightclub. The first floor was the actual lounge, and it had a classic feel to it. A small bar was against the wall on the left, and round tables with long white tablecloths were spaced neatly throughout the room. On the back wall was a medium sized stage, complete with a grand piano. The lounge recalled the speakeasies of the prohibition era.

The second floor aimed to attract the younger crowd, and did an admirable job of it. The bar was near the front of the room by the staircase. It was free from the walls and was surrounded on all sides by bar stools, all of which were filled. Like the first floor, there was a stage in the back. But instead of a grand piano, a DJ's booth occupied it. The wall on the right side of the room featured six tables, three on either side of a door that led to the roof. The door was locked up as the roof was currently under construction to become another party area during the hot New York summers. The rest of the room in between the stage and the bar was the dance floor. The left wall of the club featured a large flat screen television that displayed images of people dancing, usually attractive females.

"I think I'm grasping most of the concepts involved with this clubbing thing. One thing has been bothering me since we got here though." Courtney shouted as she lifted her arms in the air and swayed back and forth as Kim ran her hands down Courtneys sides, over her butt, and down her legs. Kim smiled up at her from a crouch, and rose back up rubbing her body against Courtneys.

"Like, how we got in here?" Kim asked as she continued to grind suggestively against Courtney. When they had arrived at the front door, Bonnie had calmly walked up to the doorman and given her name. The other three girls had all laughed at her brashness, but they were quickly silenced as the bouncer made a mark on his list and opened the door for them. "I've been wondering that myself actually."

"Maybe we don't even want to know." Courtney said with a laugh. She spun around so her and Kim were back to back, with their hands on each other's hips. They continued to rub against each other, dipping lower and lower with each beat of the song.

The song ended a moment later, and Kim and Courtney walked off the dance floor holding hands. In their wake they left a gaggle of young men whose jaws were slack and several more who were getting slapped in the arm or head by angry girlfriends. The cameraman who walked the crowd filming for the big screen shook his head, knowing he wouldn't find anything to top that display on this night.

The girls noticed of course, and laughed as they reached the small area near the tables where people weren't dancing. Through the course of the night they had discovered that some of the most fun a girl who isn't trying to hook up could have is by being a tease. They also found it to be more fun when they worked together.

"Did you see the look on the face of that blonde guy in the pink collared shirt?" Kim laughed.

"Yeah, it was almost as good as the death stare his girlfriend was giving us." Courtney responded with a grin. "I really hate to admit it, but this is actually kind of fun."

"I know!" Kim said. "I think next time we should come with guys, to see if that's any fun."

"Oh hell yes. I totally want to see Ron out there tearing up that rug."

"Well he claims to be a bon diggity dancer, so we will have to see." Kim shrugged. "Hey do you want a water? I'm parched."

"Yes, please." Courtney gasped. "I'm dying! I'm pretty sure I've sweat more dancing tonight than I did fighting Black Adam in the desert."

"You can find a new dance partner then, honey. Sweaty women are a turnoff." Kim teased. "I'll be right back."

"I'll be right here."

Courtney laughed as Kim sauntered towards the bar, turning the heads of several guys, and a couple girls. Her tight hip hugger jeans and midriff baring green tank top showed off her athletic form perfectly. Courtney turned her share of heads as well as she quickly made her way to a table that had just opened up. Courtney was wearing a pair of tight khakis and a bright red button up shirt with the top three buttons undone. The undone buttons had Courtney showing more than she wanted to, but the shirt didn't fit or look right with the buttons done. For the most part the two girls shared the same body type, but as Kim pointed out when they were getting ready, Courtney had about a "two button advantage" over her, referring to the way Kim wore the same red polo shirt.

Courtney had just sat down when out of the corner of her eye she caught a guy approaching her. She kept her gaze fixated on the bar, watching as Kim tried to work her way though the large crowd trying to buy drinks.

"I have to say," the guy began, apparently undeterred by being ignored. "If your boyfriend saw you dancing like that, he would probably scrap his space adventure to get back here as soon as he could."

"Well he's not here, so I'm guessing the planet he's on doesn't get the direct feed from that big wall TV." Courtney said as she recognized the voice. She turned in her chair and smiled at Wally West. "Of course you'll have the good taste not to tell him that I was sexy dancing with his best friend."

"Are you kidding?" Wally laughed. "I'm not telling anyone, I think my wife would kill me if she knew I even watched that!"

Courtney laughed and stood up, giving Wally a hug.

"Not to sound rude or anything, but what exactly are you doing here Wally?" Courtney asked as she sat back down. "This place doesn't really seem like a married guy hang out."

"Roy." Wally answered with an eye roll. "Us old Titan boys try to get together once a month for a couple beers. I guess it's our way of trying to pretend we are normal people with normal lives. Of course we usually go to somewhere a little more laid back. Robby and I prefer jukeboxes and pool tables to dance floors and DJ's, but Roy insisted on coming here."

"No kidding." Courtney grinned as the pieces fell into place. Kim's comments earlier in the day about Bonnie visiting Titans Tower, Bonnie and friends being on the guest list at a high profile club, and now notorious superhero lothario Roy Harper insisting to his friends that they come here tonight. "Where is the rest of the gang anyway?"

"Robby is over at the bar." Wally said, referring to Nightwing by the nickname given to him during his days as Robin. "Last time I saw Roy he was out on the dance floor with some young brunette, maybe a year or two older than you…oh, there they are right there."

Courtney looked to where Wally was pointing and laughed. Sure enough Roy was dancing with Bonnie, who was looking up at him with the doe eyed gaze of girl with a crush.

"That's my friend Bonnie." Courtney explained, answering the question posed by the confused look on Wally's face. "She's friends with Kim, and the word around the campfire is that Bonnie has been visiting Titans Tower to visit people not named Kim."

"Wow." Wally chuckled and shook his head. "Well, that's Roy for you."

At the bar, meanwhile, Kim was finding it quite difficult to get service. She had managed to squeeze her way through the crowd and right up to the bar, but she was getting a mixture of 'I'll be right with you' looks, to being flat out ignored by the people behind the bar. Normally a girl as attractive as Kim would get served ahead of anyone, but unfortunately for her she had a large red X on the back of each hand which marked her as under the age of twenty one. The bartenders knew this meant she wanted water, since they didn't serve soda, and they knew that probably meant little or no tip.

Kim sighed as a bartender took the drink order of a man who was leaning over Kim's shoulder. She began to wonder if maybe she should have scrubbed the X's off in the bathroom like Bonnie and Monique had.

"Having some trouble?"

Kim turned to the man sitting at the bar stool to her left. She figured he was maybe five or six years older then her. He wore blue jeans and a plain black t-shirt that did little to hide a muscular build. His dark medium length hair was not styled in any particular way, but it seemed perfect atop a strikingly handsome face that featured a pair of the deepest blue eyes Kim had ever seen. There was something that seemed slightly familiar about him, but Kim dismissed the feeling, as she was certain she would have remembered meeting or seeing this guy before.

"I, um, well, uh…maybe?" Kim stammered, suddenly feeling like a fourteen-year-old girl, not to mention the world's biggest idiot.

"Let me guess, having a water?" The man asked with a smile.

"Two actually, how did you know?" Kim asked

"There aren't many drink choices up here if you aren't of age." He replied, pointing at the back of Kim's hand.

"Oh yeah, I guess not." Kim agreed as she glanced sheepishly at her hand. The man smiled again as he turned back towards the bar and flagged down a passing bar tender.

"Hey Susan."

The barkeep named Susan stopped in mid stride and turned to Kim's new friend. She smiled and batted her eyelashes in a way that made Kim roll her eyes.

"Yes handsome?"

"Another Bud for me please, and two Evian's for my friend here."

Susan's expression fell as she glanced at Kim, who smiled sweetly. Susan reached under the bar and produced the drinks. Before she could give a total the man slid a folded fifty-dollar bill across the bar.

"Keep the change." He told her, causing Susan to smile brightly and gush a thank you.

"Susan is working her way through college." The man explained to Kim as he handed her the waters. "Every little bit helps".

"Well aren't you just quite the Samaritan there…" Kim trailed off, hoping a name would fill the space.

"Dick, Dick Grayson." Dick said, extending his hand.

"Kim Possible." Kim said, reaching to shake Dick's hand. To her surprise he grabbed her hand and kissed the back of it.

"Pleased to make your acquaintance Kim."

"The pleasure is all mine Dick."

"So, come here often?" Dick asked, flashing a perfect smile.

"First time actually." Kim returned the smile, but she inwardly groaned. It figures, she thought, a handsome guy with a lot of class and money, and he drops one of the lamest pickup lines out there. "You?"

"Sort of. It's my first time here since they turned it into a bar."

"What did it used to be?"

"Originally there was a dentists office on the first floor and an art school on this floor."

"Did you pull teeth or paint pictures?" Kim asked as she sat down on the bar stool next to Dick. The girl that had been sitting there pushed her way through the crowd around the bar, hollering in excitement about the song that had just begun to play.

"Neither actually." Dick said. "Like I said, that's what was here originally. When I was here though, it was a crack house with an underage prostitution ring being run out of the second story."

Kim stared at Dick in disbelief. Clearly the lame pick up line was the least of this fellow's flaws.

"They've really fixed it up since then though." Dick added.

"Well", Kim said quickly as she stood back up, "I had better get this water to my friend. She was pretty thirsty."

"I'll walk with you." Dick smiled again, following Kim away from the bar. "You can hear the rest of my story."

"Great." Kim muttered, rolling her eyes as Dick fell in step beside her. He leaned in a little closer than Kim cared for before speaking again.

"I traced some missing children back here. Turns out some young girls were being kidnapped and forced into prostitution." Dick spoke low and deep, his voice a gravelly growl that would have absolutely terrified Kim if she hadn't heard it before. "So the gang and I piled into the Mystery Machine and came down here and cracked some skulls. The fact that it was a crack house was a bonus. The police seized a lot of product, and got several junkies off the streets. Not to mention a dozen or so missing children that we were able to return to their parents."

Kim stopped dead in her tracks and turned to face Dick. He pulled away from her and stared at her with a cold, emotionless expression. The deep blue eyes which moments ago had seemed shiny and joyful now appeared cold and focused. After a moment he grinned, his expression returning to normal. It unnerved Kim a little bit at how easily Dick was able to go from totally emotionless to completely normal in the blink of an eye.

"That was quite awhile ago though." Dick said, his voice back to normal. "As I said, they've really fixed the place up, and I bet you there are maybe only three or four junkies in here tonight."

"You! I don't believe it. I mean, are you serious?" Kim asked in disbelief. Dick's response was a smirk and a wink. "Why now? Why here of all places?"

"I hadn't really planned on it, honestly. I saw Roy putting Bonnies name on the guest list and I knew I would see you though, so I figured what the hell."

"So that's why Bonnie wanted to come here." Kim shook her head and laughed. "I can't believe you just did that here though. You had me thinking you were a total freak with that whole crack house thing."

"Honestly I was still a little unsure if I should do it tonight." Dick admitted as they resumed walking towards Courtney and Wally. "It is a little public, so I would have to be really discreet and everything. Then I was sitting there, and I saw you up on screen dancing and I knew I had to do it. I thought to myself, 'maybe if I tell her who I am she will dance like that with me'."

"Oh my god, you saw that?" Kim groaned as her face turned as red as her hair. "That's so embarrassing."

"Why? You are a pretty good dancer. I think you've got a future as a stripper if the hero thing ever falls through."

"Oh shut up." Kim laughed, elbowing Dick in the ribs. They reached Courtneys table, and Kim slid the bottled water across to her.

"About time." Courtney remarked, popping the lid off the bottle and taking several large gulps.

"Sorry, I ran into a friend."

"Hey Courtney." Dick smiled at the blonde, who got up to give him a hug.

"Dick, how are you?" Courtney asked as she returned to her seat.

"Good, how about yourself?"

"Boyfriends in space, so I could be better." Courtney shrugged. "Other than that, not too bad."

"He'll be back before you know it." Dick offered. "Probably sooner if he knew…"

"I'm coming across the table if you make a joke about our dancing." Courtney said, pointing a threatening finger at Dick, who threw up his hands in surrender.

"Hey look at that guys." Wally piped in, pointing to the far side of the bar. Everyone turned or leaned so they could get a view of what Wally was pointing at. Bonnie was leading Roy by the hand through the crowd and towards the exit. They eventually made it there and left without so much as a glance backwards.

"Ah, young love." Courtney remarked, earning a laugh from everyone.

-GL-

It hadn't taken Green Lantern long to find the battlefield. Once he had exited the tunnels the device Chevoot had given him pointed him in the proper direction. Once he knew where to head he was able to follow the sounds of battle and the plumes of smoke that stretched high into the sky. The fighting was taking place in another city, this one smaller then the one he had landed in. The battle raged in the middle of the city, and the battlefield was almost like a line drawn through the city. On one side was total devastation while the other side was almost undamaged. Lantern wondered how long the fighting here had been going on, and how far back into the city the Dreagians had been pushed over the course of the battle.

His arrival had reenergized the Dreagian troops. When he arrived they were entrenched behind a fallen building, barely holding off the approaching forces. Now they were fighting alongside several construct soldiers and tanks, and were pushing the forces of Bzzarg back.

Lantern himself was zipping around the combat area dodging laser fire. He was concentrating on disabling enemies' tanks and vehicles while leaving most of the troops to the Dreagian forces.

Bzzargs army was a hodgepodge of alien technology and alien species. Lantern wondered how many of the troops joined up with Bzzarg freely and how many were recruited from different worlds he had conquered. Lanterns musings were interrupted as he suddenly found himself the bearer of an unwanted passenger.

Lantern looked over his shoulder at the alien who was riding on his back. The alien was dressed in the same armor as the ones he had encountered when he first arrived. The soldier had apparently lost his weapon in the process of boarding the Green Lantern because he was fumbling with a sheathe on his hip, trying to pull out a knife.

"Hey pal, no free rides." Lantern said as a construct hand grabbed the alien by the front of his uniform and held him out in front. "I don't suppose you would want to tell me where your buddy Bzzarg is holed up? It would really make this a lot easier."

"Die!" Was the reply, shouted in a dialect the ring was able to translate. The trooper emphasized his point by pulling his blade and waving it at GL. Lantern sighed and zipped down closer to the surface, dropping the soldier as he did so.

"He was helpful." Lantern remarked to himself as he ducked under a blast from a tank. The tanks were roughly the size of a large SUV with the guns located on either side of the vehicle with a large black domed cockpit on the top. The tank hovered a few feet off the ground and crept towards Lantern, its guns charging for another blast.

Before the guns could finish charging a pair of construct hands appeared in front of either gun, sticking their index finders in the barrel. The guns fired anyway, backfiring into the tank. The dome exploded, and two armored aliens came running out trying to escape the fire that was engulfing their tank.

Lantern looked around and was mildly surprised to find that he had just taken out the last of the tanks. He was equally as surprised to find that this battle was over. Judging by the mood of the Dreagian troops, this was one of very few victories.

Those that weren't tending to wounded or rounding up prisoners of war clapped each other on the backs, hooted and hollered, and even danced. Lantern smiled as he flew towards where they were gathered. When he landed he was met with applause and several of the troops gathered around him clapping him on the back and giving him abbreviated versions of the greeting he had received from Tramet.

"Green Lantern, this is certainly an honor." One of the Dreagian soldiers approached Lantern and sized him up before extending his hand, which Lantern shook. "I'm Beccorm, commander of this outfit. Did I get the handshake right?"

"Nice to meet you Commander." Lantern smiled. "Yeah, you got it. I didn't think your people shook hands."

"We don't. I've done some traveling in my time though, studied some other cultures, that kind of thing."

Lantern was about to ask Beccorm when he had visited Earth when the device on his gauntlet began beeping. Lantern looked down to find a yellow light flashing on the screen. He stared at the device wondering what the light was for.

"Press the screen." Beccorm suggested. "I think someone is trying to call you."

Lantern nodded and pressed the screen, which was then filled by Tramets face.

"Green Lantern." Tramet spoke through the tiny speaker on the device. "There are several more battles that could use your attention. We've sent the coordinates to your screen. Tramet out."

The transmission ended and Tramet vanished from the screen. After a split second a map appeared with three red dots indicating combat areas. Beccorm moved to Lanterns side and peered over his shoulder.

"That's the closest to here." Beccorm said, pointing to one of the red dots.

"Thanks, time to fly then." Lantern said, floating off the ground.

"Hold on." Beccorm said, halting Green Lanterns ascent. He turned towards his troops and whistled loudly, instantly gaining their attention. "Everyone who's healthy get ready to move out. Doc, you stay and see to the wounded, get everyone cleaned up and start moving them back to base. Kettoa, get yourself four or five guys to herd these prisoners back to the prison camp. Everyone else with me."

"You don't need to do this." Lantern said, floating back down to the ground. "Get your troops some rest, I can handle all this."

"There is no doubt in my mind of that." Beccorm said. "That being said, this is our planet, these are our cities burning, and our people dying. I appreciate your help, and I know that without that help we are pretty much humped. But you're crazy if you think we are going to sit around and watch you fight this fight by yourself."

Lantern looked from Beccorm to the group of troops gathered behind him. Aside from the five men assigned to escort the prisoners of war, there were only ten other troops who were injured enough to keep them out of action. Lantern knew these men weren't soldiers by trade, they were civilians forced to take up arms by this attack. However each one shared the same look of grim determination. Lantern gave Beccorm a smile.

Lantern aimed his ring in front of the men, and a construct boat appeared. The vessel resembled the boats used by the Allied forces to storm the beaches during D-Day in World War Two. The troops looked around at each other, unsure at first, until Beccorm strode confidently into the ship.

"Lets go boys." He commanded as he took his seat at the head of the boat. The rest of the troops filed in, filling the seats and admiring the vehicle that had appeared from thin air. When the last man was on board the loading ramp lifted up and locked into place. Moments later both vessel and Lantern were airborne, streaking towards their next engagement.

-GL-

The next battle began in much the same way as the last one had The Dreagian forcers were hopelessly outnumbered and were being forced back when Green Lantern and his troops arrived. Even with their arrival the Dreagians were still outnumbered, but they now had the heavy firepower, as well as a bright green morale boost.

This round of fighting was taking place in the first rural area that Lantern had seen on the planet. There were only a few buildings, most of which were heavily damaged or totally destroyed. The rest of the terrain consisted of large open fields, with only the occasional rock formation, thicket of trees, or storage unit to provide cover. Lantern assumed that at one point this had been a large farm of some sort.

As he had done before Lantern focused mainly on the vehicles and heavy artillery, leaving the infantry combat to Beccorm and his men. This group of attackers had fewer tanks, but featured a large number of hovercrafts with mounted laser cannons.

The hovercrafts were slightly smaller than the tanks, with two seats in the front and the cannon mounted in the open space at the rear of the vehicle. The vehicles featured what Lantern considered a major design flaw; nothing was enclosed. The drivers only protection was a half windshield and whatever weapons the man sitting next to him had.

Lantern took advantage of this as he flew along side one of the lead hovercrafts. The driver glanced to his left and saw GL, who gave him a wave. Before the driver could shout at his passenger he was rendered unconscious by a construct boxing glove. The driver slumped to his right, turning the controls as he did so. The hovercraft banked sharply, throwing the gunner from his seat. He hit the ground hard and rolled several feet, faring much better then his craft mates.

The driverless hovercraft crashed into another hovercraft that was riding along side of it. The driver of that craft struggled with his controls trying to avoid the building he was being forced into. His passenger and gunner realized his attempts were futile and bailed out just before the two vehicles crashed into the building. The two crafts were engulfed in flames as soon as they impacted. The mounted gun from one of the ships shot flaming into the sky, cart-wheeling end over end until gravity won out, plunging the flaming debris into the front of a tank that had been motoring along some sixty yards behind. The fire quickly spread into the tank, forcing three alien troops out of their machine.

"Well then." Lantern whistled, admiring his handiwork. "A three for one. That will certainly raise the old batting average a few points."

Lantern adjusted his course to intercept more of the hovercrafts armed with the knowledge of two design flaws. No passenger protection, and apparent susceptibility to explosion. GL headed off a group of four hovercrafts that were chasing a group of Dreagian soldiers who had apparently run out of ammo. Lantern willed a construct brick wall in between the Dreagians and the hovercrafts. Lantern smiled to himself as almost all the gunners and passengers bailed out of their vehicles at the sight of the wall. Apparently, GL thought, he wasn't the only one who was aware of the whole explosion thing. The drivers held on until the last, desperately working the controls and the brakes, trying to avoid the wall. The first three crashed into the wall, while the fourth managed to slow up just enough to avoid crashing. Unfortunately for him, he stopped too close to the flames from his comrade's crashes. Almost immediately the fire consumed his craft.

The construct wall vanished, giving the retreating Dreagian soldiers a view of the damage. They all began to laugh, pointing at Green Lantern and waving happily. Lantern gave them a salute and a prize. Four construct bubbles emerged from the fire and wreckage and floated towards the Dreagians. When the bubbles burst the four drivers fell roughly to the ground. Lantern flew off, leaving the Dreagian soldiers to deal with their new prisoners.

Lanterns next target was a tank that had several men pinned down behind a medium sized rock formation. The tank was blasting away at the rock, chipping away bit by bit. The men on the other side had no choice but to hide and hope for help. The rock formation sat in front of the remains of a building and the closest cover on either side was at least thirty yards away. Lantern zipped towards the tank, determined to disable the men inside, not the machine itself. If the Dreagians that were pinned down could operate the tank, it would go along way in winning the battle.

BOOM

Lantern came to a dead stop and turned towards the sky.

"I know that boom, but please don't be that boom." Lantern said as looked for the source of the boom. His eyes went wide behind his mask and he muttered a curse under his breath as he realized it was indeed the boom he knew. It was a boom tube, the teleportation technology that had been developed on the planet Apokolips. The only time GL had ever used the technology was when the Justice League reformed to fight the White Martians. When their mission to the West Coast was over, Lantern commented on how awesome he thought the boom tube tech was. Superman had assured him that while it was probably the most advanced teleportation technology around, the boom was usually followed by bad news.

Lantern turned back towards the tank, which was still firing, and sent a construct saw blade buzzing its way. The new development forced him to abandon his tank-stealing plan. The blade cut through the front of the tank, gun and all, rendering it useless as both a weapon and a vehicle. Satisfied with that result Lantern rose into the sky to see what was coming out of the boom tube.

Just like Superman said, the large portal in the middle of the sky had begun to spew forth nothing but trouble for Green Lantern and his allies. Several small one man fighter crafts came zooming out of portal, as well as what seemed like hundreds of flying soldiers.

"And now they have rocket men." Lantern sighed as the jetpack wearing alien soldiers headed towards the ground, terrorizing the land based Dreagians. "Anything else?"

Lanterns question was answered as a large warship came squeezing out of the portal just before it shut. The warship looked like it had seen its fair share of battles, with several jet-black blast marks adorning the otherwise gunmetal gray hull of the ship. The ship was long and thin with portholes running down each side. It had no wings, just a large tail fin above a single engine in the rear. The ship had four large guns, one on either side pointing straight ahead, and two on the top, one pointing ahead and one pointing towards the rear.

The warship rose in the air, apparently choosing to observe the battle rather than engage in it. Lantern observed the warship, absentmindedly deflecting laser blasts from a couple of rocket men who had decided to bother him.

"That's no warship." Lantern finally realized. "That's just a janky old transport ship with some aftermarket cannons!"

Lantern laughed as he turned his focus to the rocket men who had begun to annoy him. Construct scissors cut the harnesses of the jet packs, sending their pilots plummeting towards the ground. Only at the last possible moment did Lantern whip them each up a construct parachute, which he removed when they were about ten feet off the ground.

He gave the transport turned warship another glance before he rejoined the battle. Lantern recognized the type of transport as one used by many alien races to transport workers and supplies to and from planets in the same system, most often from a planet to its moon. It was strictly a short-range vessel, though engine modifications and boom tube technology could certainly increase the range of any ship.

Lantern zipped through the air avoiding the laser fire from the rocket men. He owned the edge in maneuverability and used that to his advantage, weaving in between men, and using the fighter crafts as shields and to set picks on the rocket men, many of whom were crashing into the fighters, as well as each other in trying to keep up with the Green Lantern.

Lantern came up behind one of the rocket men and pointed his ring at the aliens jet pack. At GL's request the ring did a quick scan of the pack, which looked like nothing more then a large white bullet, with a flame coming from the bottom.

"Ring, where might I find the power source for the pack?" Lantern asked, as he stayed directly behind the rocket man, who was desperately trying to shake GL.

Power source is a fuel cell located in the cone portion at the top of the device. The fuel cell holds two Earth liters of acillyutroleum, which is a fuel mined on the planet…

"Thanks, ring." Lantern cut off the ring's explanation. "You can give me the design specs later. Oh, and easy with the metric system buddy. One last thing though, is acillyutroleum flammable?"

Negative.

"Badical." Lantern grinned. Using his ring, Lantern blasted a hole in the fuel cell of the jet pack. The alien fuel came spilling out, mixing with the flame from the pack, but not exploding. The jet pack began to sputter and the alien glanced over his shoulder with a panic stricken look on his face. He shouted something at GL that he couldn't quite make out before heading towards the ground to make a very rough landing just as he ran out of fuel.

"I guess they don't use acillyutroleum in those hover crafts down there." Lantern remarked as he employed his new strategy on several other rocket men. "I should take some of that stuff home with me. Actually, Batman probably already uses it to run his Batmobiles."

Lantern punctured a few more tanks, planning to move on to some of the fighter crafts when he heard a loud scream coming from behind him. He turned to see five rocket men, heading straight towards him, guns blazing and battle cry roaring.

Lantern floated perfectly still as the laser blasts sailed harmlessly all around him. When the rocket men got closer, he made a construct net in front of them. Their momentum carried them right into the net, which Lantern wrapped around them. The rocket men frantically killed their engines as their flames began to burn one another. Construct hands reached inside the net and removed their weapons as they all floated towards the ground.

Lantern located Beccorm, who was with a group of soldiers who had just taken out one of the few remaining tanks.

"Commander!" Lantern called as he touched down behind them, the net landing roughly with him.

"Green Lantern, what in the world is going on up there?" Beccorm demanded. "Where did all these flying people come from?"

"They teleported in." Lantern explained. "I've brought something you might be able to use."

Beccorm looked over Lanterns shoulder at the soldiers struggling in his net. He looked back at Lantern and shook his head.

"I can't really deal with P.O.W's right now." Beccorm said. "Take them to the rear if you really have to."

"No, not the soldiers, their equipment." Lantern gave Beccorm a smile before turning to his captives. "Alright fellows, lets lose the jet packs."

The response was an unpleasant string of alien curses and insults. Lantern walked closer to the net and gave them a dark smirk.

"I say again, lose the jet packs."

The soldiers began to respond in similar fashion, when their construct net suddenly became more dangerous. Razor sharp points appeared on the inside of the net, which was now shrinking. One of the soldiers howled in pain as a razor dug into his skin. He began to un-strap his jet pack, and the rest of his mates quickly followed suit. The net stopped shrinking, and a hole appeared for the rocket packs to be tossed out of.

Once all the packs were off Lantern walked up to the net and mustered his best Batman voice.

"Now, run as fast as you can to the rear of this battle and surrender to the Dreagians there. If you don't, I will find you, and it will not be pleasant." Lantern had to fight himself to keep from laughing at how silly he sounded trying to be the tough guy.

The net vanished and the rocket men looked around at each other briefly before they took off sprinting towards the rear. The expressions on their face told GL he was more intimidating than he thought. He made a mental note to do his Batman for Courtney when he got home. The thought of her reaction and laughter made his heart ache for home.

"Rocket packs?" Beccorm asked, examining the discarded equipment. "I think I know what you are thinking, and I like it."

"I thought you might." Lantern said, returning his focus to the task at hand. He picked up one of the packs by the harness and held it up for Beccorm to see. There was a cable that ran from the pack to a handgrip that looked like a joystick. There was a red button on the top of the grip, and two on the side, where the operators' fingers would rest.

"The red button is the on/off switch. These two buttons on the side are for accelerating and slowing down, but you can only accelerate for short bursts." Lantern explained. He took the joy stick in his right hand and held his arm against his body, bent forward at the elbow. "Hold it like this, and tilt it in the direction you want to go."

"Forward, backward, left, right, and angles." Lantern said, demonstrating each direction. "To lift up, raise the whole stick up, to go down, drop it low."

"You've flown one of these before?" Beccorm asked, impressed with Lanterns knowledge of a device that Beccorm himself had never seen before.

"No, never." Lantern replied, handing Beccorm the pack. Lantern tapped his ring as he lifted off the ground. "I just got a crash course. Good luck."

"Must be nice." Beccorm said as Lantern flew away to rejoin the battle. He turned to his men and called out the names of the five best soldiers that were currently with him. "Strap up men, you're about to become the first members of the Dreagian rocket division."

-GL-

Green Lantern was disappointed to find that the pilots of the small fighter crafts were more skilled than their jetpack wearing counterparts. The fighters were also a lot more maneuverable, which allowed a couple of the more skilled pilots to stay right with GL as he weaved his way through the air traffic.

One of those pilots was currently hot on the Green Lanterns tail. The fighter was triangular in shape with two guns mounted on either wing section. The pilot sat in a tiny cockpit with a bubble dome protecting him. The pilot gritted his teeth as he pulled the trigger for his guns, blasting away at the Green Lantern. Unfortunately for everyone else in the air, the pilot was not taking much time to aim. Friendly fire claimed several rocket men, sending them crashing towards the ground below. It was obvious the pilot could care less, as he kept firing, intent on destroying the Green Lantern.

Ahead of the fighter, Green Lantern glanced over his shoulder as he continued to bob and weave, avoiding the onslaught of laser fire from the ship behind him. Lantern shook his head as two more rocket men met their fate high above Dreagy.

"I think this guy has more kills then anybody on our side." Lantern muttered as he tossed a handful of tiny construct balls in the air behind him. The constructs acted as chaff, and absorbed the laser blasts that were actually on target. "Alright enough of this crap, before he hits one of my guys."

Lantern sped up slightly, putting a little more space in between him and the fighter. As he did that he dove towards the ground, then abruptly turned himself over and shot headfirst towards the underbelly of the fighter. The pilot yelped as Lantern tore through the bottom of his ship, ripping him out of his cockpit, seat and all. As they crashed through the glass canopy, Lantern ripped the pilot from his seat, tossing the chair in the direction of the fighter, which was now in a tailspin, a thick cloud of black smoke marking its descent to the ground.

Lantern held the pilot out by the collar of his flight suit and laughed. The pilot was four feet tall at the most, and his skin was a putrid yellow color. His black eyes had no pupils, and were initially wide with shock, before being narrowed into a glare.

"You're not trying to compensate for something with all that fancy flying are you pal?" Lantern asked with a smirk. The pilots' response was to reach into his flight suit and produce a laser pistol, which slipped from his hands before he could aim it. The pilots' shoulders slumped as he watched the pistol go the way of his fighter.

"Stick to flying. Work on that aim though." Lantern said, pulling the string on the pilots parachute before dropping him. Lantern began looking around, trying to decide where to attack next. He was pleasantly surprised when he surveyed the scene around him.

Beccorm had commandeered an additional five jet packs, and those ten men seemed to grasp the whole concept a lot better than Bzzargs men. Despite being outnumbered Beccorm's men were now winning the battle in the sky. Realizing everything was under control in the air, Lantern turned his attention back to the ground.

He noticed four of the remaining fighters strafing the ground, blasting away at the Dreagian ground troops. Lantern made a move towards the ships, but before he could get anywhere near them all four were blasted away by the only tank that was still operational on the battlefield. Lantern grinned when the hatch popped open and a Dreagian soldier popped out, pumping his fist in celebration.

Lantern realized there was only one battle left to fight now, and he was pretty sure he knew where to find his opponent. Lantern flew towards the warship, which still floated just outside the combat zone. Lantern cut through the middle of the aerial battle, poking holes in a few enemy fuel cells as he went by.

The warship opened fire on Green Lantern as soon as he got within range of its guns. Lantern was barely able to get a shield up as one of the blasts caught him square, sending him tumbling backwards.

"Ouch…ok, lucky shot." Lantern grumbled as he righted himself and headed back towards the warship. "You better be in there Bzzarg, because I'm ending this right now."

-GL-

"That was the weather for the overnight, and now we'll get you back into the music. This next hour long commercial free set of jams is brought to you by Carlin Exterminators, whose motto is, 'If you've got roaches, termites, and water bugs…we'll kill the termites and water bugs, and smoke the roaches.' Now back to the music."

The weather and advertisement over, the radio station began playing music again. The music flowed from very expensive speakers out into a very expensive New York City penthouse. The music was being ignored for the most part as the penthouse was serving as an after hours spot for a small group of friends.

"Alright Courtney, your shot. This time though, try to hit the cue ball so that it makes contact with another ball."

"Bite me West." Courtney shot at her billiards opponent. "I think this is what they call a hustle pal. I'm a shark and you don't even know it."

Courtney walked around the table and found the ball she wanted to pocket, and the angle she was looking for. Her six-ball sat towards the middle of the table, with a relatively clear path towards one of the side pockets.

"Six-ball, side pocket." She declared with a false sense of confidence. Courtney leaned over the table and lined the shot up. With steady hands and a sure eye she drew her pool cue back and struck the cue ball, sending it rolling towards its intended target.

The cue ball struck the six solidly, and Courtney watched in horror as the six somehow managed to shoot off towards the opposite end of the pool table, while the cue ball dropped unceremoniously into the side pocket. To add insult to injury, the errant six-ball struck one of the balls belonging to Wally, sending it into the corner pocket.

"Pool shark, huh?" Wally laughed, giving Courtney a friendly squeeze on the shoulder as he walked by her to retrieve the cue ball.

"Clearly there is a flaw in this table." Courtney declared, still staring at the green felt surface in disbelief. "There is no way I am this bad."

"Well, I hate to break it to you, but you will probably never play on a nicer pool table." Wally said. "This isn't one of your beer stained, wobbly legged tables you find in a bar."

"If Stradivarius made pool tables, he would have made them like this." Roy Harper added from his spot on a nearby leather love seat he currently shared with Bonnie. They were waiting on Wally and Courtney to finish their game, before beginning one of their own. After the girls had a couple games under their belts, they were all going to give doubles a try.

"Whatever, I still think it's crooked or something." Courtney huffed defiantly as she watched Wally sink two balls in a row. "See? Totally rigged."

"I was going to buy a pool table like this once." Roy said to Bonnie.

"Yeah? Why didn't you?"

"Mainly because I didn't have a spare hundred grand." Roy grinned as he loudly added. "Not everyone is a rich kid you know."

"Oh yes, please tell us about eating at the soup kitchen when you were a child, living with that penniless Mr. Queen." Dick yelled sarcastically across the room in response to Roy's jab.

"Oh, it was horrible I tell you!" Roy responded with a laugh.

Dick laughed and shook his head as he took a drink of water. He and Kim were sitting at the bar talking quietly. Their conversation occasionally drifted to business, so they made sure they were just out of Bonnies earshot.

Roy and Bonnie had shown up at the penthouse shortly after everyone else had, making Monique the only no show. She had turned down the invitation, instead staying behind at Larrys with a couple of guys and some girls from school she had ran into. Roy had went to introduce Dick as an old friend he and Wally had met during their early Titan days when all three were living in New York. Roy was curious if the story would fly with Bonnie, but she had made it surprisingly easy on them when they arrived.

"_Bonnie, this is my good friend…" Roy had begun when they arrived at the penthouse. _

"_Dick Grayson, very nice to meet you." Bonnie said with a huge smile, enthusiastically shaking the hand Dick had extended to her. "One of the top five most eligible bachelors in Person's Magazine's top twenty five eligible bachelor list; heir to Bruce Wayne, not to mention a very wealthy man in your own right. You used to date Starfire didn't you?" _

"_That's right." Dick said with a sheepish grin. "That's how I became friends with these guys. _

"Very cool." Bonnie grinned.

"So what was it like?" Kim asked, motioning around the penthouse. "Growing up with one of the richest most powerful men in the planet as your guardian."

"Different." Dick replied. "Very different. One week I'm traveling the country with my folks in the circus, and the next I'm living in a mansion bigger than some of the town's we played in!"

"I think I was there for over a year before I had finally been in every room of Wayne Manor. Of course once I knew what was below the Manor…well the mansion itself lost a lot of its cool factor." Dick smiled, thinking back to the first time he had gone into the bat cave.

"I see you've adjusted well over the years." Kim said, motioning around the sprawling penthouse. The bar where her and Dick sat was probably the smallest section of the wide-open room, as it was part of the kitchen. A long leather sofa divided the rest of the room. To one side of the sofa was more seating and a large wall mounted television set. On the other side was the pool table area, which featured the loveseat, several book cases lining the wall, and a sliding glass door that led to a balcony with an amazing view. Kim hadn't even seen the apartments only bedroom, which she imagined was immaculate. "To being absurdly rich that is."

"Actually, this really isn't me at all." Dick admitted. "I have a small apartment in Bludhaven, and I've almost always tried to keep a job, even though I have no real reason to."

"Oh, really? So this is someone else's swinging bachelor pad?" Kim smirked.

"Some other bored rich guy who likes pool and has interesting tastes in literature." Kim continued, indicating a small stack of new books at the far end of the bar. The stack included a Sutter Cane horror novel, From Outer Space by Jose Chung, a book about the history of Yankee Stadium, and a new book of unsolved crimes.

"Alright, you've got me. I have added a bit of a personal touch to this place." Dick shrugged, before he added with a wink. "But I do have to have a nice place to take young ladies to impress them. Impressed?"

"Very much so." Kim smiled, blushing slightly.

"In addition to what you see, you might be interested to know that this apartment functions as a fully operational crime fighting outpost." Dick said softly.

"Really?"

"Oh yeah. Behind the bookcases there is a computer terminal that directly links to the main computer in Titans Tower, and the computer on the Watchtower. That coffee table in the TV area is actually an elevator lift that goes to the roof."

"What's on the roof?" Kim asked as she glanced at the innocent looking coffee table. Even knowing its true nature, she couldn't tell that the table was capable of anything more than holding drinks and magazines.

"A couple of hang gliders." Dick replied. "I think there is a mini-copter up there also."

"Jeeze." Kim shook her head. "What's in the bedroom, mission control for NASA? A forensics lab maybe?"

"Actually…" Dick began, before laughing at Kim's raised eyebrows and look of disbelief. "No, there is nothing special in there, just a hidden closet with a few spare uniforms and weapons. Not to mention a really comfortable bed."

"Nothing special he says." Kim laughed.

"Well they aren't all this laid out." Dick said, mock defensively. "The other ones are nowhere near this nice."

"Other ones?" Kim gaped. "There are more?"

"There are four total." Dick nodded. "There are a lot more in Gotham though. Batman thinks it's a good idea to have safe houses located throughout the cities we operate in the most."

"It makes sense." Kim said. "Always close to someplace you can restock your utility belt, or catch a nap. I'm sure all of these places hold a certain tactical significance as well?"

"Naturally." Dick said, pleased that Kim picked up on the importance of locating the safe houses in key areas in the city.

Across the room at the pool table Roy smiled and elbowed Wally in the ribs as he walked by.

"Look at him." Roy said, nodding his head in Dick and Kim's direction. "What is it with him and redheads anyways?"

Wally looked over to Dick and Kim, and then turned back to Roy with a skeptical look on his face.

"Really?" Wally asked Roy. "You think so?"

"Well sure, why not?"

"Not everyone is you Roy." Wally smirked. "Some of us can have a relationship with a woman that isn't based around sex."

"Are you saying I can't?"

Wally grinned, but said nothing as he let his eyes drift to Bonnie, who was sitting on the loveseat next to Courtney.

"Blow me alright?" Roy grunted. "We are talking about Dick here you know."

"True." Wally agreed as he surveyed the table for a good shot. "I thought he was just kinda taking Kim under his wing though."

"I would say he is working on taking her under his bed sheets." Roy said as he watched Kim laugh at something Dick said and playfully slap his leg.

"Heh, well it could be. She does meet the two main criteria of being red headed and a hero." Wally chuckled, referring to Dick's two most serious relationships. One was with Starfire, and the other was with Barbara Gordon, the former Batgirl and current Oracle, each of whom was a red head.

"Ahem!" Courtney said loudly from the couch. When Roy and Wally looked in her direction, she motioned towards the pool table and shrugged. "The balls aren't going to shoot themselves guys."

"Seriously." Bonnie agreed. "I've had two birthdays since my last turn."

"Yeah, lets go Flasher." Roy grinned. "While we're young."

Wally glared at Roy as he leaned over to take his shot.

"Fastest man alive my ass." Roy added, just as Wally pushed his cue forward, causing him to muff the ball. The ball rolled awkwardly ahead, barely grazing its intended target, the twelve ball.

Wally shook his head and sighed as Roy laughed, obviously quite pleased with himself.

-GL-

Once Green Lantern reached the warship it took him very little time to disarm the vessel. The mounted guns were highly ineffective at close range, and most of them fell off or exploded with just one blast from Lanterns ring.

Lantern now floated in front of this ship with his arms crossed and an annoyed expression on his face. The ship hung uselessly in the air, plumes of smoke drifting from the mounts which moments ago held the guns.

"Alright chief, nowhere to run, so why don't you just land that pile of junk and come on out nice and easy." Lantern spoke calmly into a construct megaphone. "Or if you want to stay inside, I'll take care of the landing, and then I'll come inside and drag you out of there."

Lanterns demands were met with silence for the next five minutes. With a sigh, Lantern decided he was going to have to drag the vessel to the ground. It wasn't an impossible task, but at this point he was fairly tired, and it was more work than he really wanted to do.

As if in response to the Green Lanterns sigh, a soft moaning sound came from the front of the vessel. Lantern raised an eyebrow as the sound continued for several seconds before stopping. Lantern drifted in closer to the ship, allowing him to watch as an access hatch on the top flew open. A heavyset humanoid alien pulled himself out of the hatch and stood on the top deck of the ship. The alien was dressed in armor similar to the rest of the troops. The only differences were the armor was quite ill fitting on this particular soldier, and it was heavily decorated with various ribbons and medals and tally marks. Lantern couldn't help but wonder how many of the decorations were actually earned, and how many had just been added to his collection without merit.

"Green Lantern! I am Bzzarg!" The alien yelled as he floated off the deck of the ship. He was wearing a larger version of the jet pack worn by his troops. "You will stop this madness and turn control of this planet over to me!"

"Say what?" Lantern laughed. "Are you serious? Is this guy serious?"

"You dare to mock me!" Bzzarg yelled. "I will give you one chance to leave this planet alive, as an act of mercy from one soldier to another. This planet will fall, as will the rest of this sector. Your presence here will not change that."

"Look dude, I don't know if you've noticed or not, but your not exactly winning the war here." Lantern said. "This planet isn't falling anytime soon. And as long as I'm around, this sector is under my protection."

"So be it Green Lantern." Bzzarg laughed. "Perhaps your bravado will fade when you see this!"

Bzzarg reached into a holster on his belt and pulled out a medium sized blaster. He flipped a switch on the side and the weapon sputtered slightly before it began to hum softly.

"Ok?" Lantern said, confused as to why he should be terrified of this particular blaster.

"Still your feeble mind fails to conceive your defeat." Bzzarg said. "I suppose I should expect nothing less from an Earthman. The fact that the Guardians last champion is from that backwater dump of a planet is laughable. Actually, I think once I'm done here I shall go to your planet. I won't conquer it though. No, I'll just lay waste to your primitive society. I'll slaughter your champions, and let my men have their way with your women."

"Alright pal, that's it." Lantern growled flying towards Bzzarg. "Nobody, but nobody, has their way with my woman!"

Lanterns progress was halted when Bzzarg opened fire with his blaster. The weapon emitted a very large blast of yellow energy that knocked Lantern backwards in the air.

"You see now?" Bzzarg laughed as he zipped towards Green Lantern, who was still stumbling backwards. "I know of your weakness fool! The Green Lantern is useless against the color yellow! And now, that fatal flaw shall be…fatal!"

Green Lantern righted himself in time to see Bzzarg flip another switch on the barrel of the blaster and open fire again. This time the gun fired a steady steam of yellow energy, which struck GL square in the chest and encased him in the yellow glow.

On the ground below the Dreagians watched in horror as Bzzarg assaulted Green Lantern with the yellow energy.

"That will kill him!" One of the soldiers cried. "A Green Lanterns ring is useless against yellow, everyone knows that!"

"Commander we have to help!" Another soldier demanded of Beccorm. "We still have four operational jet packs, we have to get up there!"

"Gather them up!" Beccorm yelled. "I'll be damned if I'm going to stand here and let…wait. Belay that order! Eyes skyward!"

Bzzarg laughed as he listened to the Green Lantern scream.

"I think I can smell your flesh burning!" Bzzarg declared gleefully. "I can't wait to add your power ring to my trophy collection."

"Yeah I bet you would."

Bzzargs eyes went wide behind the face shield of his helmet, as a construct shield appeared to deflect his energy blast right back where it came from. He yelped as the blaster exploded in his hand.

"See, there is something you should know about that whole color thing." Lantern smirked as he flew over and grabbed Bzzarg by the throat. "Yellow doesn't work anymore. Actually, it kind of tickles."

"No…impossible!" Bzzarg gasped as a pair of construct hands ripped the jetpack from his back. Lantern reached up with his free hand and pulled Bzzargs helmet off. Underneath the helmet Bzzarg had sickly looking purple skin, no visible nose, and a mouth that seemed much too big for his face. Lanterns gaze bored into Bzzargs two beady eyes, which were now filled with terror.

"Actually, nothings impossible for a…well, no that's not my line." Lantern said. "I suppose the reference would be lost on you regardless. Anyway, now that this has ended, somewhat anticlimactic I might add, what say we take you down there and meet your new captors. Maybe if you're real nice, they'll let you live."

With his hand still on Bzzargs throat, Lantern could feel him gulp nervously. It brought a smile to his tired face.

-GL-

"Are you sure you don't want me help rebuilding?" Lantern asked Tramet the next morning. The two of them, as well as Beccorm and Kayrrk, stood next to the smoldering embers of what had been a large bon fire. The ground around the fire was dotted with tents and sleeping Dreagians.

"Again, you've done more than enough my friend." Tramet smiled, as he shook his head no. "Besides, having your ring would make the reconstruction a little too easy on our new workforce."

Lantern grinned, knowing that the workforce Tramet mentioned consisted of all the enemy combatants that had been captured. It was a large number that grew quickly the previous night once Bzzarg was defeated. Most of his soldiers laid down arms, and were easily rounded up into the nearest P.O.W camp.

Once the fighting ceased, the celebration began. Word of the Dreagian victory spread quickly, and parties broke out all over the planet. Tramet, Chevoot, and Kayrrk had joined Lantern and Beccorm at their location, bringing with them enough Dreagian ale to celebrate the end of four wars.

"Not to mention your girlfriend will probably come looking for you if you stay out here any longer." Chevoot mentioned, walking up to join the conversation, her children following close behind.

"Very good point." Lantern admitted, unable to keep the large smile from his face as he thought of seeing Courtney.

"When you tell her the story of this battle, you may want to leave some details of last nights celebration out." Beccorm advised. "She might not take kindly to knowing that almost every woman on the planet wanted to share your bed."

"But none of them did share his bed." Kayrrk said, grinning broadly. "I think that makes it an important part of the story to tell her. The finest Dreagian women were throwing themselves at you, but you turned them all down, because your heart belongs to lady Courtney."

"That does make me sound pretty awesome." Lantern nodded. "What do you think Chevoot?"

Chevoot thought for a moment before answering.

"If your woman values courage, leadership, and heroism, the tale of the battles fought here will be enough to win her heart for all of your days." Chevoot said. "That she is already your mate tells me she is of high enough character to not feel threatened or jealous by the advances of a grateful people."

"Wow." Lantern blinked. "Thanks Chevoot."

"Still, it might not hurt to bring it up if you ever get into a lovers quarrel." Kayrrk said, elbowing GL playfully, earning a laugh from everyone in the group.

"I'll keep it in mind." Lantern said. "Sure there is nothing else I can do?"

"Go, my friend." Tramet said. "I hope you can visit us in better times."

"You can count on it." Lantern nodded. He stepped towards Tramet and engaged in the same greeting he had when they first met. Lantern had learned the night before that it was the traditional Dreagian exchange for both greeting and farewell. He moved on to Beccorm who gave him a firm handshake in addition to the Dreagian greeting.

Kayrrk surprised him by grabbing Lantern in a tight hug. Lantern returned the hug as Kayrrk whispered in his ear.

"Thank you for responding to my message. You've made a hero out of me for doing nothing more then sending a communiqué."

"Glad I could help." Lantern responded as they broke the embrace.

"When you come back to visit, bring lady Courtney." Kayrrk added. "We had quite the tourism industry before the war. I'm sure any resort on the planet would put you up in their finest accommodations."

"I'll hold you to that." Lantern smiled before turning to Chevoot. Chevoot ushered her children forward, who shyly extended their hands up towards GL, offering him a small box.

Lantern knelt down in front of the children and took the box. He opened it up and whistled softly. Inside was a necklace, made of a soft black rope material. A bright green gemstone hung from clasp, and glowed as bright as GL's ring. The stone was perfectly round and smooth, totally flawless.

"This is beautiful. Thank you guys." Lantern said. He tied the necklace around his neck and embraced the children.

"Thank you for saving our planet." They said in unison.

"Anytime." Lantern smiled.

"That gemstone can only be found on this planet." Chevoot explained as Lantern rose to face her. "They found it last night and said it reminded them of you. The stone is said to glow as bright as the wearer's heart is noble. I never put much faith in that story until now."

Lantern glanced down at the stone, which seemed to be glowing even brighter now that he had it around his neck.

"Your children have excellent taste."

Chevoot smiled and stepped up to Green Lantern. She leaned in and kissed him on his right cheek.

"A thank you for what you have done."

She leaned in again and kissed him on his left cheek.

"And for luck in your journey forward."

"Thank you." Lantern nodded as Chevoot took a step back and returned the nod.

"Good luck with the reconstruction." Lantern said to everyone as he lifted slowly off the ground. "You know how to reach me if you need anything."

Several other Dreagians joined Chevoot and the others as they noticed Green Lantern taking off. The growing crowd waved and applauded as Lantern lifted out of sight. With a final wave, he turned towards the sky and shot upwards, heading towards Earth.

-GL-

The journey back to Earth seemed to take twice as long as the trip to Dreagy. Lantern knew that wasn't the case, but it still felt that way to him. He put those thoughts aside however as he approached the big blue sphere he called home.

He was nearly giddy with anticipation as he entered the upper layers of Earths atmosphere. The flames that licked at his protective green aura did nothing to take the grin off his face. He had the perfect plan already mapped out in his head. Once he got home he would call Courtney and tell her to hurry over. While she was in transit Lantern would take a nice hot shower. If he timed it right he would be done right before Courtney got over, allowing him to greet her at the door and give her the most heart fluttering, toe curling kiss she had ever received.

After that kiss he would shut the door and scoop her up into his arms. Then it would be off to the bedroom, or maybe even just the couch.

"And once we get there, look out!" Lantern declared loudly as the he broke the clouds and the City came into view. "I think I'll start by…by…by…"

Lantern trailed off in shock as he was able to see the city clearly now. He realized that most of the clouds he had passed through was actually a think layer of smoke and smog that hung over the city. Rather, what remained of the city? New York sat in a state of total devastation. Buildings were toppled, small fires burned in the streets; cars and buses lined the streets in various stages of destruction and disrepair.

"What the hell?" Lantern muttered as he zoomed down to the street level. Pieces of trash and debris lined the streets, and despite the time being roughly two in the afternoon, the lack of light made it feel more like eight at night. "No…this can't be real. Courtney, Kim…my god…"

"Halt!" A female voice shouted from above him.

"What?" Lantern turned, the voice shaking him out of his thoughts. An energy blast came from the direction of the voice, striking him square in the chest. The blast knocked him down to the ground, sending him crashing through the front of what had once been a pizza shop.

Lantern shakily got to his feet and tried to clear his head. He was under attack and he needed to focus, but he was finding that to be easier said than done. He still wasn't over the shock of seeing the city in such a state, not to mention the crippling concern he felt for Courtney and Kim.

Lantern was so caught up in his own thoughts he failed to notice the person that had followed him into the pizza shop.

"You dare!?" The same female voice shouted. Lantern looked up just in time to catch a powerful right cross to the chin.

Lantern went flying backwards into the wall, which didn't give at all when he struck it. It was easily the hardest GL had ever been hit, and there was no doubt in his mind that without the protection of the ring, the punch would have taken his head clean off.

Lantern made a move to pick him self up off the ground, but was stopped by the blade of a large sword being leveled at his face. His gaze ran up the blade to the handle, and his eyes went wide as he recognized who was holding the sword.

"Wonder Woman?" Lantern gasped. The woman holding the sword looked like Wonder Woman, only a few years older. She was also more heavily armed than Wonder Woman. She wore armored boots that came up past her knees, and a chain mail skirt. The magic lasso still hung from her belt, but a sheath for the sword at Lanterns face accompanied it there. Her breastplate was solid gold armor, and featured large shoulder pads. She still wore her magic bracelets, but her tiara was replaced with an open-faced battle helmet.

"You dare to show up here? Wearing the uniform of a fallen comrade?" Wonder Woman growled, the sword never once wavering. "What is the meaning of this grotesque charade?"

"What the hell are you talking about Diana?" Lantern yelled. "What in blue blazes is going on here?"

Wonder Woman's eyes narrowed at the use of her name. She drew the sword back ever so slightly, but Lantern knew it would be coming forward again, and fast.

"Donna, wait!"

"Donna?" Lantern mumbled as Wonder Woman glanced towards the front of the store at the owner of the second female voice.

The newcomer was dressed in a full body uniform. Her suit was mostly blue, with three white stars on the outside of each arm and leg. The woman's boots were split, with the inside being white, which ran all the way up the inside of her legs and belly before it opened up into a large white star on her chest. She wore red gloves, and a large red cosmic converter belt around her waist. Her entire face was covered by a blue mask, which had two white-eye slits. A long blonde ponytail was pulled through a hole in the back of the mask.

What really caught Lanterns eye was the golden cosmic rod the woman carried in her right hand. It was almost identical to Courtneys, except the end of it didn't resemble a hook, but a battle-axe blade.

"What is it Star Woman?" Wonder Woman growled. "Of all people you should be most appalled by this abomination."

"I am…but what if…" Star Woman said softly as she approached Wonder Woman and Green Lantern.

Lantern couldn't believe his ears as Star Woman spoke. The voice was slightly different, but it was similar enough that Lantern would know it anywhere.

"Courtney?" Lantern asked in disbelief. Star Woman stopped in her tracks, her cosmic rod rattling to the ground as it fell from her hand.

"No, it…it can't be." Star Woman gasped. Wonder Woman glanced back and forth between the two, before sheathing her sword.

"Ron?" Star Woman asked hesitantly. "Is it you?"

Lantern glanced at Wonder Woman and slowly stood up. As he did so he removed his mask, causing Star Woman to gasp in disbelief.

"Courtney? Is that you?" Ron asked.

Star Woman reached up and pulled her own mask away from her face. This time it was Ron's turn to gasp. The woman under the mask was most certainly Courtney Whitmore. She was also most certainly no longer eighteen.

"Courtney, honey," Ron began slowly. "What in god's name is going on?"

To be continued…

-GL-

Well as usual, sorry for the long delay. Work has been pretty busy, which in turn has made me pretty lazy in my free time. Hopefully there won't be as long a wait for the next chapter. I shall make no promises about a time frame though, since I never keep them anyway. Thanks to everyone still reading. Also, if anyone has any questions or comments they would like answered or…commented on, fire away in the reviews. I'll be responding for this chapter.


	24. Future Imperfect Part 1

Chapter 24

"Courtney, honey," Ron began slowly. "What in God's name is going on?"

Courtney opened her mouth to respond but before she could utter a word the front of the pizza shop exploded. Courtney and Wonder Woman both shielded their faces with their arms as pieces of brick and glass came flying in at them.

Surprised that she was not being pelted with debris, Wonder Woman lowered her arm and turned towards the front of the store. A glowing green wall was in place between her and the front of the store, which was now on fire. She shook her head in disbelief and turned from the wall to look at Courtney, who was staring at the wall with an enormous smile on her face.

"It really is you." Wonder Woman said softly, glancing over her shoulder at Ron, who had risen to his feet.

"Damn, we've got company." Courtney said grimly, the smile fading from her face as she pulled her mask back into place. "Shock troopers."

The shock troopers Courtney spoke of began filing into the store through the giant hole they had blasted moments ago. The troops wore shiny crimson armor with a large black 'D' on the left breast. They also wore crimson helmets with jet-black visors, completely covering their faces, if they even had a face to cover. Once the troops were all in, they formed a line, leveling their blaster rifles at the heroes, seemingly undeterred by the construct wall.

"Why do I get the feeling this is going to delay the explanation I was about to get?" Ron asked glumly as his own mask rematerialized on his face.

"Your feeling is correct." Wonder Woman nodded, drawing her sword again. "We need to get back to the island. Courtney?"

"No back exit." Star Woman replied. She had moved to the back of the store, only to find the entrance to the kitchen, and the only other exit, caved in. "Hard to believe this used to be our hang out isn't it GL?"

Lantern tilted his head at Star Woman and looked around the shop. It took him a moment, but he slowly realized they were standing in Draimans, the pizza shop where the gang usually gathered.

Lantern ran his hand through his hair and rubbed the back of his now aching head. He stared at Star Woman, who stared right back at him. Her full-face mask hid whatever facial expression or emotion she was showing. On top of everything else, the expressionless mask almost made him scream.

"Not now you two." Wonder Woman commanded. "Lantern, can you clear us a path?"

"Yeah, sure." Lantern mumbled, turning slowly away from Star Woman. He could still feel her staring at him as he faced the shock troopers, who had now opened fire on his construct wall. "Here we go."

The construct wall exploded outward, sending shock troopers and debris flying in every direction. Wonder Woman led the way out of the store, using her blade to cut down the few remaining shock troopers that stood in their way.

"This way, before they recover!" Wonder Woman yelled, motioning for Green Lantern to follow her. Lantern nodded, blasting a trooper as he took to the sky after Wonder Woman. He glanced over his shoulder to see Star Woman right behind him, using her shooting stars to provide cover fire for their escape.

The trio zoomed through the deserted city streets, dodging weapons fire from the rapidly gaining shock troops. Despite the life and death situation, Lantern was still having a hard time focusing. His instincts and his ring were the only things keeping him from getting fried. He suddenly came to a screeching halt in mid air as he realized where Wonder Woman's winding path had led them.

Lantern stared at what remained of his apartment building. Some sort of explosion had victimized the front of the building. The resulting hole hung open like an untreated wound, while the roof was caved into the top floor apartments.

"Hey!" Star Woman yelled, snapping Lantern out of his thoughts. "Now is not the time for sightseeing!"

Lantern turned to Star Woman, who had doubled back when she saw Lantern stop. She was fighting off five of the shock troopers that had followed them from Draimans.

Lantern joined the fray, clearing three of the troopers away with a construct bulldozer. Star Woman took care of the remaining two in brutal fashion. The first trooper took an energy blast from her cosmic rod to the face at point blank range. Star Woman then flipped the rod over and jammed the end of it into the midsection of the second trooper, who had been trying to take her from behind. The sword like tip easily pierced the armor, lodging in the man beneath. Star Woman glanced over her shoulder at the trooper and fired again. The energy blast literally tore the trooper in half as he was dislodged from the rod.

"Courtney! What the hell?!" Green Lantern yelled as he watched the halved trooper hit the street below with a dull, wet, thud. "What are you doing?"

"Its called surviving Ron." Star Woman stated simply. "Donna needs our help."

Star Woman flew by him without another word. Ahead of them, Wonder Woman was engaged with six more troopers. Lantern hesitated for a moment, and then followed Star Woman. He reached them just in time to see Wonder Woman dispatching the last guy, which she did so by wrapping her lasso around his waist and launching him into the side of a building.

"Let's go, before more show up." Wonder Woman said, taking only a couple of seconds to wrap up her lasso before leading the way again.

"After you stud. Unless you would like to do some more sightseeing?" Star Woman said, motioning for Lantern to go ahead of her.

"I don't know, are you going to impale me when I turn away?" Lantern shot back. He followed Wonder Woman, but angled himself so he could easily look back at Star Woman.

"Look Ron, you haven't been here, and you haven't seen what's happened." Star Woman spat angrily. "So don't just show up and…and…start judging!"

"I'm not judging Court." Lantern began softly. "I just…I mean, you just killed a guy! The city is destroyed, I…I have no idea what's going on here."

"That's what happens…when you disappear for six years, honey." Star Woman choked out softly. She dabbed at her mask with the back of her free hand, wiping at unseen tears.

"What?" Lantern gasped. "What did you just say?"

"Not now, we've got more company."

Lantern turned around and came to a stop beside Wonder Woman who was facing ten shock troopers, all of whom floated in mid air with their weapons drawn.

"Lay down your weapons and surrender." One of the troopers called to the trio of heroes.

"Lantern," Wonder Woman began softly as GL and Star Woman floated up next to her. "I need you too…"

"Six years?" Lantern asked, interrupting Wonder Woman. He turned to Star Woman and asked her the same question. "Six years, is that what you said?"

Star Woman looked away as Wonder Woman threw her a glare over Green Lanterns shoulder. Lantern turned back to Wonder Woman.

"She said I've been gone for six years."

"This is your final warning. Surrender or be destroyed."

"Lantern…Ron…" Wonder Woman said. She nodded her head in the direction of shock troops. "Obviously there are some things we need to fill you in on. However, I really don't think right now is the best time to discuss those things."

"Oh, it's not?" Lantern asked. He turned away from Wonder Woman and put a construct barrier in between them and the troopers. The troopers immediately opened fire on the barrier, and charged forward, preparing to fly over the obstruction. As they did so the barrier expanded, forming a roof and a floor. Lantern made sure it expanded wide enough, and quick enough to encompass all the troops. Within a matter of seconds all ten of the troopers were encased in a construct ball. Some of the men fired their weapons at the construct, only to have their blasts ricochet around the inside, eventually striking one of their own men.

Next to the construct ball appeared a construct cannon that would have looked at home on a pirate ship. The ball was loaded into the cannon, and promptly shot out across the city. As the ball vanished out of sight miles away, Lantern turned back to Wonder Woman, who was staring at him wide eyed.

"Is now a good time?" Lantern asked politely.

"I guess it is." Wonder Woman replied. "But not here. Come on, we're almost home."

Lantern again found himself following Wonder Woman, but for a much shorter distance, and without the deadly pursuit. They landed on the shore of the Hudson Bay, which was littered with wrecked boats, garbage, debris, and just about anything else that could float.

"Take a deep breath." Wonder Woman instructed as she dove into the murky water.

"Is that even water anymore?" Lantern wondered aloud.

"Not like it was that clean before." Star Woman replied. She pulled her mask up away from her mouth and pulled a rebreather from her belt. She pressed the device in between her lips and took Lantern by the hand. Lantern whipped himself up a construct air tank and mask, filling it up with natural air right before Star Woman pulled him into the bay.

Underwater, Star Woman maintained her grip on Lanterns hand as she used her cosmic rod to light the area directly in front of them, and propel them through the dreary depths.

After a short trip through the water, she led them inside a cave near the bottom of some sort of island. Inside the cave they found Wonder Woman treading water, with an impatient look on her face. The water around them rippled and a low moaning rumbled through the cave as a large steel door sealed the entrance of the cave behind them. Several vents opened on either side, rapidly sucking the water out. After about thirty seconds all the water was drained from the cavern. A smaller door on the opposite side of the cave creaked open, spilling light into the dark room.

"Come to the briefing room when you get dried off, we will give you your answers there," Wonder Woman said to Green Lantern and Star Woman as she strode out of the cavern.

"Where the hell are we?" Lantern asked as his construct scuba gear vanished.

Star Woman released Lanterns hand, which she had held through the entire drainage process, and removed her rebreather and mask.

"We're in the lower levels of Titans Tower." Courtney explained. "There isn't a tower anymore, but everything below ground is still here."

"So you're like a Titan now?" Lantern asked as they walked out of the cave. He was surprised at the sadness in Courtneys laugh.

"There are no Titans anymore Ron. No Justice League, no Justice Society, or Young Justice, or anything like that." Courtney said. "This isn't a base of operations anymore, and we aren't heroes anymore."

Courtney stopped and looked up at her long lost boyfriend. She reached up and pulled the mask away from his eyes and stared into them.

"This is just home now." She finally said softly. "Welcome home Ron."

-GL-

After a quick stop in a locker room that was adjacent to the airlock entrance, Courtney led Ron down the dimly lit corridors of Titans Tower. Courtney took the time to rinse the river water off and change into some dry clothes, while Ron simply dried off and used his ring to replace his soiled uniform with a clean one.

"So who are all these people?" Ron asked, breaking a silence that had been going strong since they walked out of the airlock. Since leaving the locker room the pair had encountered about fifteen people in the hallways. All of them were dressed in tattered street clothes, and most of them greeted Courtney with a wave, or a hello.

"Just people." Courtney answered. She was wearing a pair of baggy sweatpants and a tight blue tank top, an outfit that made her fit right in with the other people in the hallway. Ron, however, stuck out considerably in his clean, glowing uniform. "Like I said earlier, this is home, and not just to the super types."

"Are you saying this is like humanities last refuge or something?" Ron asked as a group of teenagers walked by, staring at him. He could hear them whispering to each other once they passed. "I feel naked without my mask."

"I told you, no none gives a damn. Secret identities are useless now." Courtney smiled sadly. "A thing of the past. And no, not our last refuge, it's just one of the safest. There are outposts, and towns all over the country. This is where the remaining meta-humans set up residence though, so a lot of people try to seek refuge here."

"For safety?"

"Some come for safety. Some come because our setup is a little nicer here. We have a constant power source, as well as our own water treatment and waste processing facilities, which is a lot more than most of the other places have." Courtney paused for a moment, looking down at the ground before adding, "There are also the people who come here because they still think we are going to save the day and make things right again."

"You make that last part sound impossible." Ron said, surprised at the defeated tone of her voice. Courtney's only reply was a simple shrug.

The same uneasy silence settled over the pair again, and stayed with them for the next several minutes. When the silence was again broken, it was Courtney's turn to do so.

"I can't believe you haven't asked me yet." Courtney said. "I figured that would be like, your first question."

"Babe, I have so many questions right now its ridiculous." Ron stated, allowing himself a small smile, which Courtney returned. "Chief among them…how did all of this happen? I've decided to wait until we get to the briefing room though."

"Good thinking. I'm still wrapping my head around the return of my long lost, presumed dead boyfriend."

"So I'm still your boyfriend then?" Ron asked hopefully. "I thought maybe you had moved on and stated dating some crazy ass Mad Max type that I was going to have to battle in some sort of futuristic duel to win you back."

Courtney stopped in her tracks and burst out laughing. The sound of her laughter brought a grin to Ron's face. For a moment everything seemed right again.

"Oh man." Courtney breathed. "I've missed that so much Ron. I haven't laughed like that in years."

Ron hesitantly reached out and put his arm around Courtney's shoulder. She was a few inches taller now, but she allowed herself to be pulled in close, turning into him as she wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Courtney, I'm sorry." Ron whispered into her ear as they embraced "I should have been…"

"Stop." Courtney interrupted, her voice cracking slightly as she tried to fight back tears. "Not now, not now. Just...hold me…"

Ron said nothing as he complied with Courtneys request. He held her tightly as she nuzzled her head into his chest. Despite the fact that his word had been turned on its ear, Ron felt it all slip away while he held Courtney.

"Well?" Courtney asked as she pulled away from the embrace. She could have remained in Ron's arms for the rest of the day, but she knew there would be time for that later. "You still haven't asked me. About her."

"I'm afraid to." Ron admitted softly, falling in step beside Courtney, who had began walking again. He knew what Courtney was getting at when she first mentioned his unasked question. He had wanted to ask the question since the pizza place, but he was terrified of what the answer might be. "I just want to see her sitting in that briefing room, ready to tell me what the sitch is."

The silence that followed his statement broke Ron's heart. Kim Possible would not be waiting for him in the briefing room, or anywhere in this God forsaken future.

"What happened?" Ron choked out softly. Now it was his turn to fight back tears.

"Nobody knows." Courtney replied in a delicate tone. "She went to Bludhaven with Nightwing for training about a day before everything went down. No one has seen or heard from either of them since."

"No, that can't be right." Ron shook his head as tears flowed freely down "She could do anything, she's Kim Possible. She was with Nightwing? He's the best though, and she could do anything…"

Now it was Courtney's turn to try and comfort Ron. She took his hand in both of hers and kissed the back of it, giving it a firm squeeze. Courtney knew there was nothing she could say, so she didn't.

"Damn." Ron grunted. He hadn't even said goodbye to Kim before he left, and now she was gone. He knew that Kim was the girl who could do anything, and if there had been a way to survive whatever happened, Kim would have found it. But there was a voice in the back of his head, the voice of reason, and it filled his head with doubt. It had been six years, Courtney had said. If Kim were alive she would have found someway to let her friends know.

"We're here." Courtney said, snapping Ron from his thoughts. She pulled her hand away and entered a five-digit code on the keypad next to the door. The door shuddered and slowly slid open, allowing Ron to follow Courtney into the briefing room.

-GL-

The briefing room was essentially a fairly large conference room. A large round table sat in the middle of the room. Two walls were lined with computer terminals and various other pieces of equipment. The far wall held several maps of New York City. The maps were all drawn on, and Ron wasn't quite sure what any of the symbols meant. The whole setup reminded him a lot of the command center he had seen on Dreagy. The main difference between the two was the general feeling Ron got. On Dreagy everyone was bustling around the command center, performing a task, doing anything to help turn the tide of a battle. There was the feeling of concern, but underneath everything there was hope. In the room where he currently stood, Ron felt nothing at all. There was no hope, and no energy. There was just a table full of skeptical former heroes.

"Hey everybody." Courtney greeted with a wave. "Sorry to drag you all in here, but Donna and I found something interesting on our supply run. For those of you that don't remember, this is Ron Stoppable, the Green Lantern."

"Hey." Ron waved, as a murmur worked its way around the table. He looked around at the faces staring back at him. Some of them he recognized, and Courtney was about to fill in the blanks.

"Alright, starting from the front and going clockwise." Courtney said. "We have, Dr. Ray Palmer, Ted Kord, Eel O'Brien, Victor Stone, Jakeem Thunder, Cissie King, Zatanna Zatara, Cassie Sandsamark, Wally West, Selina Kyle, Dr. John Henry Irons, Barbara Gordon, Dinah Lance-Queen, and last, and also least, Oliver Queen."

"How very droll Stars." Ollie smirked. "Good to see you alive kid. Where the hell ya been?"

"I went to help out with that distress call I received." Ron replied with a shrug. "I thought I was only gone for about three days though."

"Can your ring confirm that time frame?" Dr. Palmer asked, leaning forward in his chair.

"Ring, how long was I away from Earth?"

_Lantern 2814 spent two days on the planet Dreagy, one day in space._

"You didn't pass through any worm holes or experience anything strange on your way home?" Dr. Irons asked, glancing from Ron to Dr. Palmer.

"No, the ring plotted the course both times. Why?" Ron asked.

"Just trying to understand why your three days is six years here." Dr. Irons responded. "When you are done here, could you please join us in the lab?"

"Yeah, sure." Ron replied.

Drs. Irons and Palmer headed for the door, where they waited for Ted Kord and Barbara Gordon to join them. Ted made his way to Barbara and grabbed the back of her chair. He pulled it away from the table and guided the wheelchair bound former Batgirl towards the exit.

"Well, who here is a good story teller?" Cassie asked. "I'm sure GL would like some blanks filled in."

"Not me, I'm really only good for props." Eel said. To make his point the man once known as Plastic Man twisted his body into the shape of a book. "Any of you lovely ladies is welcome to read from my pages though."

A mixture of laughter, groans, and rolled eyes was the response to Eel's offer.

"How about you pretty bird?" Ollie said to Dinah, nudging her arm. "You've got a good voice."

"Oh, but that doesn't get any groans?" Eel moaned, sticking his finger in his mouth and making a gagging face. The expression was over exaggerated due to the elasticity of his features, and it earned him a glare from Ollie.

"Well I suppose." Dinah sighed. "You might want to pull up a chair."

Ron nodded and took the seat vacated by Ted Kord, with Courtney sliding into the empty seat next to him.

"I guess I'll start by telling you that Degaton is responsible for all of this." Dinah said.

"That time guy?"

"Yes Ron." Courtney smiled, patting him on the leg. "That time guy."

"Sorry, do continue."

"Anyway, it started with an attack by Degaton." Dinah began again. "At first it seemed to be the average Degaton incident. He appeared in the park where some of the JSA members were having a picnic with some from a local orphanage. He didn't seem particularly interested in fighting us though. He just kinda hung around and taunted us for a few minutes. That was when we noticed the Tyrannosaurus Rex marching through Manhattan."

"Wait, you mean like, the dinosaur?" Ron asked, wide eyed.

"Yeah, the dinosaur." Dinah replied. "See, Degaton could travel through time, observing the future, trying to change the past, things like that. His time disc always kept him out of phase, so we had a hard time hitting him in the present. Unfortunately Degaton found something that allowed a little more control over time. An ancient artifact called the Tempus Simia."

"Time monkey? Why does that sound…argh!" Ron grabbed his head with both hands and let out a howl of agony. His head began to throb painfully, like someone had it in a vise. Then, as quickly as it came, the pain was gone.

"Oh man…what the hell was that?" Ron asked. To his surprise everyone at the table stared at him with a neutral expression, as if nothing out of the ordinary had just happened. Only Courtney showed any concern, taking his hand in hers and giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"That would be a new memory forcing its way into your head." Cissie explained. "There have been a lot of changes to the time stream. A new memory comes in when something in your past is altered, or if some previous time travel is just making itself known."

"Something about the Tempus Simia rang a bell." Wally observed. "Care to share old buddy?"

"Yeah, I think I can." Ron said slowly. "When Kim and I were in high school, some of our main villains teamed up to stop us. Their plan involved stealing the Tempus Simia and go back in time to prevent Kim from ever becoming a hero. We stopped them in the past, but somewhere along the way Shego stole the time monkey and used it to break up Team Possible, and eventually to conquer the world. We went to the future and stopped her, which apparently undid everything Shego did, since I'm just now remembering this."

"I'm guessing this new memory stuff happens all the time?" Ron asked the group of former heroes.

"More often than we would like." Cissie said. "Every time Degaton goes into the past and messes with something that directly relates to us, we get a new memory. At first you wouldn't notice a new memory. It would be like you always knew it. But now, time is so screwed up that the memory has to jam itself in there, and instead of replacing the old memory, it coexists with the old one."

"Yeah, I remember moving to Norway and living there, but I also remember…not moving there." Ron muttered. "Wait, what do you mean time is screwed up?"

"I'll get to that." Dinah said. "Anyways, the Justice League was dispatched to handle the rampaging dinosaur. That was when we found out we had more problems on our hands then just a big, angry Jurassic Park escapee. While the Justice League was taking care of the dinosaur, Hitler's armies were marching through downtown Metropolis, and one of the worst earthquakes in the history of man tore through Gotham City, virtually destroying it. Down the river in Bludhaven, Chemo, a radioactive member of the Brotherhood of Evil fell out of the sky. When he hit the ground, it was like a nuclear bomb went off."

"My God." Ron whispered. "Kim…"

Courtney gave Ron's hand another squeeze, which this time he returned. Across the table Wally gave his friend a sympathetic look, while Dinah looked down and rubbed the bridge of her nose.

"If anyone else wants to pitch in on this part of the story, I would appreciate it." She requested, obviously unsettled by recounting all the destruction.

"In Chicago, the infamous Chicago fire began again, setting the town ablaze." Cassie started, taking over for Dinah. "Which was made worse by the fact that every piece of firefighting equipment in the city vanished. Most of the city burnt to the ground. The southern states and coast states were inexplicably struck by a combination of hurricanes and tropical storms. California broke away and sank into the ocean."

"It wasn't just this country either." Vic added. "In Europe, the plague broke out, killing millions. In Japan, atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki…again. There was no way we could respond to everything happening, even at full strength."

"How was all this happening?" Ron asked. He was confused, and starting to feel sick to his stomach. So much death and destruction, and it all happened at once.

"The Tempus Simia, your time monkey." Zatanna said. "Degaton was using it to bring all of those events and people into our time. Since he has been able to observe time, he knew exactly where to go to pick the most destructive events."

"It wasn't all stuff from the past either." Ollie said. "He brought things from the future, alien attacks, advanced weaponry, diseases that modern medical science had no cure for."

"We were helpless." Cassie said softly, clenching her fists in anger. "All these powers and all we could do is respond to the disasters and help as many as we could. Degaton was untouchable!"

"He knew every plan we conceived before we conceived it." Dinah said. "Oh, he would let us get close, let us think we had him, but then he would just disappear into the time stream, or stay just one step ahead of us at the last second."

"It only took him a week to end civilization as we know it." Dinah continued. "He doesn't even care about ruling the world either. He has a palace, some building he brought in from the future, and that's where he spends his days. He dispatches his shock troopers whenever we go out into the world, but we haven't actually seen him in years."

"All he ever wanted to do was destroy the Justice Society." Courtney said, speaking up for the first time. "That's exactly what he did. Made us watch helplessly as he destroyed the world, then went about destroying us."

This time it was Ron's turn to give Courtney's hand a squeeze as she bowed her head, remembering fallen comrades.

"As far as we know, we are the only super types left." Ollie said, motioning around the table. "We lost some in battle, we lost some to time, and some of them…well, some of our allies never existed."

"What?" Ron raised an eyebrow.

"If you can't kill Superman, just send him to the past." Eel explained. "In one of our first attempts to stop Degaton, he sent big blue back to the cave man times. If Wonder Woman is giving you trouble, make sure she never becomes Wonder Woman."

"On Paradise Island there was a competition to win the honor of leaving for mans world to become Wonder Woman." Donna said from the back of the room. She had been leaning against the room, silent until this point. "My sister, Diana, won the competition. Degaton went back and changed the outcome of the competition, causing my sister to be mortally wounded. Our mother, Queen of the Amazons, was so distraught she abandoned the idea of sending a representative to mans world."

"But…" Ron began, pointing at Donna, who was still wearing her Wonder Woman armor.

"With that event changed, there was no Wonder Woman until about three days after you left." Donna continued. "When Degaton launched his attacks, I took up the armor and left Paradise Island to help the rest of the heroes."

"The weird part is…" Cissie began.

"Oh, there is a weird part?" Ron interrupted sarcastically.

"The weird part," Cissie began again, giving Ron a smirk. "Only some of us remember it like that. Others, like Cassie over here, remember Diana being Wonder Woman, and Donna being the original Wonder Girl and all that stuff."

"I was the second Wonder Girl." Cassie explained. "If there was no Wonder Woman, why would I have still been Wonder Girl?"

"And I remember serving with Donna as a member of the Teen Titans." Wally added. "She has been one of my closest friends since I was a kid. As far as my memory is concerned, she's always been here, and just took up the mantle of Wonder Woman when Diana vanished."

"But I don't remember her at all." Ollie said. "The first time I ever saw her was when she saved my ass from an explosion in Star City."

"And Donna is most certainly someone you would remember seeing." Eel said, bugging his eyes out at Donna, while waggling a pair of rubbery eyebrows.

"Some of us have just had our memories straight up stolen." Jakeem Thunder said. He reached into his pocket and tossed a ballpoint pen on the table. "I know there is a genie that lives inside that pen. I know that, because we were a part of the JSA. I also know that I have to say a magic word to get my genie to come out. But I'll be damned if I can remember that word. Nobody remembers, not even Stars, and we were on the same damn team!"

"They tell me that I was one of the most powerful magicians on the planet." Zatanna added. "Trouble is, my father was the one who taught me and set me on the path of magic, but he died when I was an infant."

"Without her father Zee is just a regular gal." Dinah shook her head sadly. "But once again, some of us remember her as that magician, and some of us don't."

"I say, once again…" Eel started, stretching his elbow over to nudge Ron playfully. He stopped though, when Ron, and everyone else at the table shot him a glare. Eel folded his arms and muttered glumly, "looks like Degaton just went back and erased this groups sense of humor."

"My memory crapped out in the middle of a fight." Zatanna shrugged. "One minute I'm casting a spell, the next I'm wondering what the hell I'm doing in a top hat and fishnet stockings standing in front of a burning building."

An uneasy silence settled over the room. Ron leaned back in his chair, processing everything he had just been told. It seemed ridiculous, but the evidence was all around him. Everyone else sat in quiet reflection, none of them thrilled with rehashing the horrible events of the last several years.

"So." Ron said after a few minutes. "What do we do now?"

"What do you mean?" Cissie asked.

"If my new memory serves, when Kim and I went to the future to stop Shego, I broke the Tempus Simia." Ron explained. "It reversed all the changes Shego made to the time stream, and put everything back to normal. So if we can get to Degaton, and break the Tempus Simia, it should undo everything, right?"

The plan seemed solid to Ron, but to his surprise it was met with sad smiles, some laughter and a couple headshakes.

"Do you really think it's that easy?" Jakeem asked angrily. "You don't think we've thought of that? Oh, well, hey lets just go up to Degaton's crib, kick in the door, and break his monkey statue. Why didn't we try that years ago?"

Jakeem stood up and snatched his pen off the table. He stepped away from the table and stormed towards the door.

"J.J…" Courtney called after him.

"Save it Stars." Jakeem growled as he opened the door. "Someone explain to your boyfriend why that won't work anyway."

"Uh, sorry?" Ron called out before the door slammed shut. "I didn't mean…"

"Don't worry about Jakeem." Courtney sighed.

"Kid's got anger issues." Ollie grumbled.

"He gets upset. His genie, the Thunderbolt, was more then just a genie to him, it was his best friend." Courtney explained defensively.

"We've all lost friends." Cissie said. "There's no need to take that anger out on each other."

"What Jakeem should have said was we have tried what you suggested." Cassie said. "We just can't get close to the idol. Like we said, Degaton knows all our moves before we do."

"So that's it then?" Ron asked in disbelief. "Degaton has won? We just spend the rest of our days holed up in this little bunker?"

"Pretty much." Eel voiced the words that everyone else was thinking.

"I don't believe that." Ron shook his head. "Wally, what about you? You told me before about that cosmic treadmill thing your Uncle Barry built. Let's use that to go back and stop Degaton before he gets the Tempus Simia!"

"Oh, Ron…" Courtney gasped.

"It's ok Stars, he doesn't know." Wally dismissed Courtney's concern with a wave. He pushed his chair away from the table so Ron had an unobstructed view of him. For the first time Ron realized that Wally was in a wheel chair, with both legs missing below the knee. "I don't do a whole lot of running anymore Ron."

"Oh man…Wally, I'm sorry." Ron breathed, his face turning beat red.

"You didn't know." Wally said softly, wheeling himself back to the table.

"There's something else too." Vic said. "Another reason why breaking the idol won't work. Time is pretty much screwed."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Think of the timeline as a child's toy, a stuffed bear or something like that." Vic explained. "Now imagine that toy has been around for awhile, and lot's of different kids have played with it. So now someone new gets this stuffed bear, and he plays, and plays, and plays with it, all day long. Eventually the bear is going to get worn out, maybe some holes in it. Now you can patch that bear up, but it ain't never gonna be the same. And if you keep playing with it, those patches won't hold, and that bear is eventually going to be damaged beyond repair."

"So the timeline is damaged beyond repair, is that what you're saying?"

"Pretty much."

"Not only that, but…" Cissie began.

"Cissie." Cassie interrupted her old friend with a stern look.

"What? He's here now, same as the rest of us. He has a right to know." Cissie replied defensively. She turned to Courtney, who nodded yes to her. "That teddy bear Cyborg was just talking about? It's eventually going to collapse in on itself."

Ron cocked an eyebrow at Cissie, who put her hands together and flared them outwards, making an explosion sound as she did so.

"Really?" Ron asked.

"Afraid so." Ollie said. "Looks like you came to the party just as everyone is getting ready to clean up."

"Oliver, that's a horrible analogy." Dinah scolded. Ollie simply shrugged in response.

"How long?" Ron asked softly.

"A week, a month, maybe a year." Cassie said. "No longer then a year, according to the research."

"And then what?"

"Time collapses, everything goes blooey." Cissie said. "It might cause another big bang, recreate the universe. It might reset the timeline to a certain point, before it was tampered with at all. Or everything in the universe may cease to exist. No one is really sure."

"Want my advice kid?" Ollie asked as he rose from his chair. "Have Donna set you up with a living quarters, and spend the end of days with a loved one. That's what I'm doing."

Ollie leaned down and kissed Dinah as everyone else stood up and made his or her way towards the exit.

"Still on for dinner Stars?" Cissie asked as she and Cassie walked by Courtney and Ron. "You are more than welcome to join us Ron."

"Yeah we will be there." Courtney smiled at Cissie, as Ron stared straight ahead.

Ollie made his way over to Ron on his way out of the briefing room. He gave his former Justice League teammate a sad smile and clapped him on the shoulder. Ollie thought about saying something, but the far away look on Ron's face as he stared at the wall told him there was nothing he could say.

-GL-

"You don't like the fish Ron?"

Ron looked up from his plate to Cissie, who was looking at him with a concerned expression. She had prepared the dinner herself, and judging by the look on her face, she took great pride in her cooking. As a self-proclaimed master chef, it was a trait Ron admired. He smiled at her and shook his head.

"Actually it's great Cissie." Ron said truthfully, stabbing a piece of fish with his fork and eating it. "Honestly, I'm a little surprised at the quality of food. I half expected everyone to be eating rats, or rations, or some freeze dried crap. You know, your typical post apocalyptic menu items."

The joke lightened the mood considerably, and everyone enjoyed a laugh. Ron had been mostly silent since he and Courtney had arrived at Cissie's quarters. It had made for an uneasy situation at the dinner table. Courtney, Cassie, and Cissie had all made their peace with the inevitable end of everything, but Ron, being new to the situation, had not. The girls were hesitant to converse as if everything was normal, because they remembered how somber the mood had been at the dinner table when they all found out about the impending doom.

"I think we have some Twinkies." Courtney offered. "It's said they are the only things that can survive a nuclear explosion. That might give your meal a more authentic end of the world flavor."

Ron's laughter officially lifted the tension. The girls smiled at each other as they returned to their meals. None of them expected Ron to accept his new status quo over night, but knowing he wasn't going to sulk himself to death made being around him easier.

"Seriously though, what's the deal?" Ron asked, indicating the spread Cissie had prepared. In addition to the baked fish, there were also baked potatoes, green beans, and dinner rolls.

"There was a large underground hangar that we were able to convert into a large indoor garden." Cissie explained. "We set up UV lighting to simulate the sun, rigged up a nice irrigation system, even brought in several tons of soil to plant stuff in."

"It gives us a pretty nice variety of veggies, but we do eat a lot of fish since they are easy to come by." Cassie added. "We don't get a lot of meat, when we do its mostly venison. That's if our hunting party is able to stay out long enough without being harassed by Degaton's troops."

"The rolls are a treat though." Cissie said. "Bread isn't exactly plentiful anymore, but someone snagged a bunch of those frozen tubes of dinner rolls on a trip into the city a few months back. We've been saving this tube for a special occasion."

"I'm glad I warrant the special occasion rolls." Ron smiled.

"It's not every day a long lost boyfriend returns." Cissie grinned, passing the bowl of potatoes to Cassie. "Not to mention, Courtney has been demanding these rolls for about two weeks now."

"It's true." Courtney shrugged as she buttered one of the discussed rolls. "I really like these rolls, they remind me of home."

The other girls nodded in agreement, and the four of them ate in silence for a moment. For the first time Ron's thoughts drifted to his father, and his second family, the Possibles. He felt a little bit of shame that it had taken him this long to think about them, but there was just so much to try and wrap his head around. He wondered if they were all dead, or living in one of the survivor colonies Courtney had told him about.

"So Ron, aside from the lousy homecoming, how did your mission to space go?" Courtney inquired, shaking Ron from his thoughts.

"It went pretty well." Ron replied. "There was some evil space conqueror trying to take over the planet and enslave the Dreagian race. I was able to help the Dreagian army fight them off until the big wanna-be conqueror himself came down and got beat up."

"Was he a total badass?" Cassie asked, setting her fork down to focus all her attention on Ron. "Like, wearing the skulls of his conquests as a hat?"

"No, not exactly." Ron laughed. "He might have been pretty tough at one point, but he had been letting everyone else do the fighting for him for awhile, I think. Made him a little soft around the middle."

"So you totally pantsed him then?" Cissie asked excitedly.

"Pretty much. It was kind of funny actually, he had this energy blaster that shot yellow energy. Naturally he gloated a little bit, offered me the chance to surrender, talked about how he was going to come destroy Earth and all that typical evil maniac drivel."

"He didn't get the memo about yellow?" Courtney smiled. "I thought you posted that on your blog?"

"He must have missed that entry."

"Did you mess with him when he pulled his yellow blaster out?" Cissie asked hopefully.

"Oh, for sure!" Ron grinned. "He fired on me and I put on a big show for him, yelling in agony and begging for mercy. Then I just shrugged it all off and gave him the old one two, and turned him over to the Dreagians."

"What were they going to do to him?" Cassie asked. "Execute him?"

"They were going to put him to work first." Ron explained. "There was a lot of damage done to their planet, they planned on using all the prisoners of war to rebuild."

"Solid plan." Courtney nodded in approval.

"Yeah, I thought so." Ron nodded. "I guess the planet was a big tourist place, with lots of resorts. They invited us to come out once they got rebuilt."

"Aw, how sweet would that have been?" Cissie sighed. "A romantic get away on an exotic alien planet. That would be so awesome."

"Yeah, I'm sure it would have been." Courtney agreed softly as she stood up, taking her plate in her hand. "Are you done?"

"Oh, yeah thanks." Ron said as Courtney took his plate and headed towards the kitchen area. "Excellent meal Cissie."

"Thanks Ron." Cissie smiled as she too rose from her seat to help clear the table. "You'll have to get in the cooking rotation, Courtney said you're quite the cook."

"I do alright." Ron shrugged modestly.

Cissie walked into the kitchen, where Courtney was filling the sink with water. After a moment Cissie chased Courtney out of the kitchen.

"Go." Cissie was saying, a tiny smirk on her face.

"Fine, fine." Courtney laughed. "Ready to head home Ron?"

"Uh, yeah I guess so." Ron replied, glancing across the table at Cassie, who gave him a smile and a wink.

They all exchanged goodbyes and as the door closed behind them Ron heard Cassie call out with a laugh, "You kids have fun tonight!"

-GL-

"How come you didn't shack up with a friend like Cassie and Cissie?" Ron asked as he looked around Courtneys living quarters. It was designed for one person, therefore much smaller than the one they had just had dinner in.

Courtneys place was like a smaller version of Kim's Titan Tower apartment, only without the walk in closet and sprawling bathroom.

"I didn't take a roommate because I was hoping you would come back." Courtney replied. "Notice the queen sized bed."

Ron looked into the corner at the bed that was way too big for one person. He noticed that only one side of the bed looked slept in. The covers on the right side weren't even turned down. He glanced at Courtney, who shrugged and walked towards the closet, pulling her tank top off as she walked.

Ron watched her for a moment before turning away and heading towards the bed. He looked down at the nightstand and the four framed pictures that sat atop it. One was a team photo of the Justice Society, taken a couple of years before Ron and Courtney met, judging by how young she looked in the picture. The second picture was of Courtney's family, taken shortly after Patricia was born. Mrs. Whitmore lay in a hospital bed holding the baby, flanked on one side by Pat Dugan and Mike, and Courtney on the other side. All of them were grinning ear to ear, even the baby. The third was a simple picture of him and Courtney with their arms around each other and the New York skyline in the background. Ron smiled, remembering the day they had a stranger take it on the observation deck of the Empire State Building.

Ron picked up the fourth picture when he came to it. It was a picture of Courtney, Kim, Bonnie, and Monique, all dressed up for a night on the town. Each one of them was leaning forward, one hand on a hip, the other to their mouth, blowing the camera a kiss.

Courtney slid up behind Ron, wrapping her arms around his waist. She looked over his shoulder at the picture and chuckled.

"Sexy aren't we?"

"Without a doubt." Ron said softly as he returned the picture to its spot with the others. "When was that?"

"The day after you left. Monique insisted we all go out. I didn't want to at first, but I had a good time. And now, I'm so glad I went."

"Yeah, I bet." Ron said, turning around to face her. "Hey…"

"I hope you don't mind." Courtney smiled. She had changed into her nightshirt, which was one of Ron's old red hockey jerseys. The jersey was well worn and slightly tattered, as well as being several sizes to small now. The jersey stopped just below Courtneys butt, allowing Ron a full view of her long bare legs. "I stopped by your apartment and picked up some things when we first moved in here. I think it looks better on me anyways."

"I would agree with you. I don't suppose…"

Courtney smiled and pointed to the bed where a pair of black sweats and a green t-shirt laid neatly folded.

"Awesome." Ron smiled. He powered down for the first time in days, or technically, he thought, years. He was left standing in his boxer shorts, and he took a step towards his clothes. A firm hand on his chest stopped his progress. He looked down at Courtney, who looked up at him, eyes brimming with tears. "Court?"

Courtney took her hand and drove Ron into a sitting position on the edge of the bed. She followed him down, straddling his lap and wrapping her arms around his neck. The tears were flowing freely as she leaned in and kissed him. It was the kiss Ron imagined giving Courtney when he first returned home. He just didn't imagine it would be a twenty four year old version of Courtney that he would be kissing.

Conflicting emotions ran through Ron as the kiss continued. It was Courtney he was kissing, but not exactly. For all intents and purposes this was his girlfriend, just older. What would the Courtney from his time say if he told her he got it on with her future self? Would he even ever get a chance to tell her?

The moral dilemmas running through Ron's head came to an abrupt halt, as did the kiss, with a loud knocking on the door. Courtney pulled away and glared at the door. She turned to Ron and pressed a single finger to her lips, indicating for him to stay quiet.

There was another loud knock, followed by a pause.

"Courtney, Ron, I know you two are in there." Dr. Ray Palmer called from the hallway. "This is important, it's about the tests we ran on Ron earlier. Don't make me shrink down and come in under the door."

Dr. Palmer leaned on the doorframe as he heard movement and harsh whispers on the other side of the door. Finally the door swung open to reveal Ron in a pair of black sweat pants and an apologetic grin on his face.

"Hey Doc." Ron said. "What goes on?"

"Ron, Courtney." Dr. Palmer greeted with a nod. Courtney stood a few feet behind Ron, glaring daggers at both men while using her hands to tug her jersey down to cover as much of herself as the old fabric could.

"I'm sorry to…interrupt…bother you." Dr. Palmer said, glancing briefly at Courtney, but trying to keep his focus on Ron. "You really need to come down to the lab though, we've got results on those tests."

"Oh, ok, cool." Ron said. "Let me just grab a shirt."

Ron walked off to get a shirt, leaving Dr. Palmer to receive the full brunt of Courtneys angry glare.

"This couldn't wait until morning, Atom?" Courtney growled, using Palmers codename for the first time in six years.

"I'm sorry Courtney, I really am." Dr. Palmer said. "This is huge though, it couldn't wait."

"What do you mean huge?" Ron asked as he returned to the door wearing the green t-shirt.

"I mean you may be the key to finally defeating Degaton. That kind of huge."

To be continued…

-GL-

A/N- Hey all, hope everyone is well. First of all (fur Stovall), I'd like to thank everyone for your comments/questions on the last chapter. Second, there are a couple things I was going to mention in my notes at the end of the last chapter, but I forgot. The radio ad for Carlin Exterminators was a respectful nod to George Carlin, who passed away around the time I was writing that chapter. The ad comes from one of his old comedy specials, and if you don't know what a roach is, you probably missed the joke. And if you don't know…well that's something you'll have to look up on your own, haha. Mr. Carlin is my favorite stand up comedian of all time, and if you don't mind a whole lot of profanity, I encourage you to check out his stuff. It's really funny material, and a lot of it will actually make you stop and think about the absurdity of things in our lives.

The second thing I forgot to mention is the books Dick has at the penthouse. Major bonus points if any of you recognized Jose Chung's From Outer Space, or Sutter Cane. Jose Chung is from a hilarious episode of "The X-Files" called, "Jose Chung's From Outer Space. Sutter Cane is the author from a horror movie called "In the Mouth of Madness", which stars Sam Neil. Once again, I highly recommend both of those for your viewing pleasure.

Lastly, this chapter is a little shorter than the last few, and the action pretty much tapers off, but I promise more action and crazy future surprises in the next chapter. Until then, please review, and stay well my friends.

Oh, one more thing. If I could be serious for a moment, I would like to encourage everyone who can to vote this year. There is some pretty wild shit going on in the world today, and this is a pretty important election. This will be the first election I'm voting in, despite being eligible for the last couple. I'm not going to get all political and preachy and tell you why you should vote for a certain candidate, because I don't believe that's my place. Ok, that's all, that's me being serious, haha. Take it easy everybody…

-R-


	25. Future Imperfect Part 2

Chapter 25

Dr. Ray Palmer walked with a certain bounce in his step as he led Ron Stoppable and Courtney Whitmore into the research lab. He was still flush with the excitement of analyzing and interpreting the results of Ron's tests. Realizing the potential the results held had sparked a fire inside him that he thought had been extinguished forever.

His last few years of scientific research had been depressing, at best. While he had helped to develop several devices and methods regarding the time stream, none of them had proved useful in trying to set the timeline back to normal. No matter how much promise a theory seemed to have, it never managed to hold up throughout the scientific process.

The most successful research and development he and his team had done involved the lighting, irrigation, and soil maintenance for the indoor gardens. While the work was invaluable, it was hardly rewarding from a scientific standpoint.

It always rubbed Palmer the wrong way when Ollie referred to him and his team as "the brain trust". While it was true that Dr. Irons, Barbara Gordon, Ted Kord, and himself were probably the smartest heroes left, they had done little to earn such a nickname for themselves. He was hopeful that was about to change.

"Alright Doc, what's the big news?" Ron asked, finding Dr. Palmer's excitement to be slightly contagious. Ron was trying to remain cautiously optimistic, but Dr. Palmer was making it difficult to do so. After having his world turned upside down, he wasn't sure if he could handle another emotional letdown.

Courtney, on the other hand, was overly skeptical, and was making no effort to hide her feelings. She leaned against a counter and crossed her arms, watching as Dr. Palmer entered a few commands into the main computer.

"Just one second." Palmer said as the computer screen blinked to life, displaying various charts and graphics. As Palmer sifted through the data, Ron eased over to Courtney.

"What's wrong Court?" Ron asked softly.

"Do you really have to ask?" Courtney snapped, refusing to look at Ron.

"What did you want me to say?" Ron asked, throwing his hands up in frustration.

"The word 'no' would have been a fine start."

"Don't you think this is a little more important? I mean we are talking about saving the world here."

"Whatever." Courtney sighed. "I think Professor Bad Timing is ready."

Ron turned towards Palmer, who was doing his best to avoid eye contact with Courtney. He crossed the short distance and grabbed an empty chair, sliding it next to Palmer. As he sat down Ron glanced over his shoulder at Courtney, who remained at her spot against the counter. She finally looked at him, and they held each other's gaze for a moment. Courtney eventually rolled her eyes and nodded towards the computer screen. Ron gave a half smile and turned back around.

"Look, I'm really sorry." Palmer said to Ron once he had his attention.

"Don't worry about it." Ron shrugged. "Priorities, right?"

"I know, it's just…I would give anything for one more night with my wife." Palmer said, referring to late wife, who had died in one of Degaton's initial time related disasters. "So I can understand why Courtney probably wants to kill me right now."

"But anyways…" Palmer added before Ron could speak. "See this display here? This is the bio-scan we took of you earlier."

Ron looked at the screen, and examined the results. The display consisted of an outline of Ron's body, along with heart rate, blood pressure, and height and weight at the time of the test. There was also a box labeled "energy reading", which flashed the words, "fifty percent unknown".

"You'll have to excuse me if this is a stupid question." Ron began after he had looked at everything on the screen. "But is all of that normal?"

"Actually, it is normal." Palmer replied with a chuckle. "Too normal, to be honest, which is why I called you down here. Compare your results with my most recent scan."

Palmer typed in a command on the keyboard and another bio-scan popped up on the screen next to Ron's. Ron compared the two, and while he expected a difference in the vitals, the energy reading portion jumped out at him. Palmers' was listed as "one hundred percent known", and featured a breakdown of energy below it.

Palmer smiled as he noticed Ron reading the breakdown list. He typed in another command, which enhanced just the two energy signatures side by side.

"First of all, let me assure you that the reason your results are only half known is because of your Green Lantern ring." Palmer began. "I've never had a chance to enter the energy signature for a power ring into the system, so the computer does not recognize it."

"Good to know."

"Indeed. Anyways, most of these percentages on my bio-scan are irrelevant. The human body puts off a certain amount of energy, as does my Atom technology. The important percentage is temporal energy, which for me is at about twenty five percent."

"Temporal?"

"Time." Courtney said, answering Ron's question. She had moved to a closer counter, sitting Indian-style on top of it instead of leaning against it. "Everything has to have a fancy term in here. Calling it 'time cooties' is unprofessional, so it's 'temporal energy'."

"That's one way of explaining it." Palmer smiled. "Now, personally, I've been relatively unaffected by the time changes. That twenty five percent is basically just from being around people and places that have been drastically altered. Someone like Zatanna, or Donna, who have been directly effected, would have a much higher percentage. Notice on yours though, there is no temporal energy registered at all."

"Well I have only been here for like, less than a day." Ron said, looking at the breakdown of his energy signature. "Would that even be enough to pick anything up?"

"You would have picked up a little, yes." Palmer answered. "That's only part of it though. You said you were gone for around three days, yet here on Earth six years have passed. That alone should give you a temporal reading off the charts because essentially, you are a time traveler. You're an anomaly Ron."

"Now there's no need for name calling Doc." Ron huffed, crossing his arms.

"Wait a minute!" Courtney cried, hopping down from her counter top perch. "You called us down here just to say that Ron's abnormal? Not only could I have already told you that, it certainly could have waited until morning!"

"Hey now…" Ron muttered softly.

"Courtney, look at the bigger picture here." Palmer said calmly. "As a time traveler, Ron's temporal energy readings should be off the charts. Aside from that, he should be showing residual effects just from being here, and interacting directly with Donna. When you first got into the city did you encounter any shock troopers, Ron?"

"No, I didn't see anybody."

"So you weren't attacked until Courtney and Donna showed up?"

"That's right."

"Courtney, how often are we able to go out into the city without being harassed almost immediately?" Palmer asked, turning to Courtney.

"Never." Courtney replied, folding her arms across her chest. "They are usually on us within minutes, what are you getting at Ray?"

"Ron, I think you exist outside of this time stream." Palmer said, turning back to Ron. "You have been unaffected by the changes all around you. I would theorize that it's because you were off planet when the initial incident occurred, therefore making you immune to the effects of the altered timeline.

"How is this the key to defeating Degaton though?" Ron asked.

"If he didn't send shock troops after you, it was probably because he didn't know you were there." Courtney mused.

"Exactly!" Palmer jumped up from his chair in excitement. "For once, we will have the element of surprise, and that might just be enough to bring Degaton down!"

-GL-

"So what do you want us to do Palmer, climb into a big green bubble and blow into Degaton's citadel?" Ollie asked, stifling a yawn.

After showing Ron and Courtney his findings, Palmer had called together all of the other former heroes. They had all reluctantly shuffled back into the conference room, lured out by the excitement in Dr. Palmer's voice. After explaining himself, Palmer found himself facing a room full of skeptical, pajama clad, former heroes.

"Well, actually, I don't know if that would work." Palmer admitted. "I'm not sure if he would be able to hide any of us."

"So you want to send the kid in alone?" Ollie cocked an eyebrow. "Great plan Palmer. Totally foolproof."

"I'm open to suggestions here Oliver." Palmer said, glaring at the archer. "We need to take advantage of this! This could be our only opportunity to take Degaton by surprise. Hell, it will probably be our last."

"What's the point?" Selina Kyle asked. "I mean, really, we could all be dead in a month anyway, so what's the point?"

The question hung in the air as everyone glanced around at each other in silence. It was in the back of everyone's mind, but no one had wanted to bring it up.

"I know I wasn't a big shot super hero like the rest of you, so I guess I have to be the one to say this," Selina continued. "Say Ronnie boy does go in there, take Degaton out, then what? He uses the time monkey thing to fix a bunch of stuff? Then everything blows up anyway? Suppose he fails? Then Courtney has to go through losing another loved one, this one for the second time? How is that possibly fair to her?"

Again silence followed Selina's comments. Ron turned to Courtney, who was seated next to him, and grabbed her hand. She gave it a light squeeze, but did not turn to look at him, choosing instead to stare at the table.

"Cats is right." Ollie finally said. "It's a nice thought Palmer, but it's…"

"Kinda like hitting a solo home run in the ninth when you're down by ten." Eel interjected, bending into the shape of a baseball bat, then back to his regular form.

"Not what I was going to say, but yeah, pretty much."

Ron looked around the table in disbelief. Nobody voiced a dissenting opinion. Even Dr. Palmer had sunk down into a chair, staring glumly at the table, his excitement crushed beneath the overwhelming pessimism of his colleagues. Most everyone avoided eye contact with Ron as he glanced from person to person. Only Cissie looked him in the eye, silently urging him to do what needed to be done.

"I don't believe you people." Ron said, standing up. "The only heroes the Earth has left, and you've all given up?"

"Hey, you haven't been here man." Jakeem snapped. "You don't know what we've gone through."

"No, I don't." Ron admitted. "I can see that it's been horrible though, and that's why I can't believe none of you want to try and change this, set it right. We actually have a legitimate shot at stopping Degaton, and none of you seem to give a shit!"

"Even if we do set it right, how long is it going to last?" Dinah said. "You've heard what we said about the time stream."

"All I've heard are a bunch of theories." Ron said, pacing around the room. "Look, you guys said that when it all comes crashing down there is a chance the timeline will reset to a point where it was pure, un-tampered with, right?"

"That's one possibility, yes." Ted Kord answered.

"So what if we stop Degaton here, then go back to when he gets the Tempus Simia and stop him there too?"

"It could work, but how would you get back there?" Barbara asked him. "You couldn't use the Tempus Simia."

"Why not?"

"This time line would have to be completely eradicated." Dr. Palmer said. "If you used the Tempus Simia to go back, there is a chance it would keep the time line polluted."

"You would have to destroy the idol here, find another way back to the past, and stop Degaton there too." Ted shook his head. "Unless you have a spare time machine around here somewhere…"

Ted trailed off as his eyes widened and he looked over to Dr. Palmer. Palmer simply shook his head and shrugged. Ted's shoulders slumped as realization washed over him.

"What was that all about?" Ron asked, noticing the silent exchange.

"We actually do have a spare time machine around here." Ted said. "We just don't have any way to operate it."

"The cosmic treadmill?" Ron asked, looking at Wally, who sat stone faced, staring straight ahead.

"Degaton sent it as a gift, after what happened to Wally." Cissie said, adding softly, "the sick son of a bitch."

"How come you guys didn't mention this earlier when I asked?" Ron demanded.

"It's a bit of a touchy subject when I'm around." Wally said. "Nobody wants to bring up the fact that we have a perfectly good time machine that is totally useless because the only person that can operate it has no legs."

Ron continued to pace around the room as Donna walked over to Wally and gave him a loving hug. Ron rubbed the bridge of his nose with his right hand, staring for a moment at his ring when he pulled his hand away.

"Wally?" Ron asked. "Is the speed force still there? Can you still tap into it?"

"Yeah, of course it is." Wally replied. "For all the good it does."

"Can I count on you, man?" Ron stopped pacing and looked Wally in the eye from across the table.

Wally looked at Ron and considered the question. Seeing the determination in the eyes and the resolve on the face of his long lost friend stirred something inside Wally West. He wasn't sure what Ron had up his sleeve, but he trusted him now, as he trusted him six years ago.

"Of course you can, pal." Wally smirked.

"I knew I could. Have the treadmill ready." Ron returned the smile, which faded when he looked away to address everyone else. "I'm going to try and make this right. Hopefully I won't get in the way of anyone's misery and self-pity. Goodnight."

With that, Ron strode confidently out of the room, leaving behind several confused heroes, one proud old friend, a hopeful new friend, and one angry girlfriend.

-GL-

"Just what the hell do you think you're doing?" Courtney demanded as she burst into her living quarters.

"Uh, putting my necklace on, so I don't forget it." Ron said, turning from the nightstand to Courtney. He slipped the necklace around his neck, and patted the green stone. "Beautiful isn't it?"

"Don't you dare give me that innocent, dopey sidekick routine." Courtney growled. "You know damn well what I'm talking about!"

"Oh, do you mean about how I'm about to leave to try and save the world?" Ron asked. "That little thing that, for some crazy reason, nobody wants me to do?"

"Yes, that! It's a suicide mission Ron!"

"You don't know that."

"Yes I do! You don't even know if this is going to work, even if you succeed."

"What would you have me do Courtney?" Ron yelled, throwing his hands up in frustration. "Sit here and do nothing? Watch the world end?"

"I would have you live." Courtney said softly. "I would have you come to bed with me, make love to me, then hold me in your arms for the next day or so."

Courtney closed the distance between them, tears brimming in her eyes. She grabbed the front of his shirt with both hands, balling the fabric up into her fists. She looked up at Ron, whose expression had softened.

"I've missed you so much these last six years." Courtney spoke, her voice barely above a whisper. "I watched my entire family die, right in front of my eyes. I've seen countless teammates die, or simply cease to exist. But you, you just never came home. Some people figured you died, others suggested you saw what was happening here and stayed out there in the stars. But I always hoped…knew…you would come back. Now you are back, and you are just going to leave me again."

She emphasized her final point by hitting Ron in the chest with each hand, releasing the front of his shirt as she did so. She turned away from him and hugged herself, shivering involuntarily from tears that ran freely down her face.

"Court…honey…" Ron said, coming up behind her and putting his hands on her shoulders. At first Courtney pulled away, but Ron was persistent, and the third time he put his arms around her she leaned back into him.

"I never wanted to leave you, and I don't want to leave you now. But you know I have to do this, just like you know you wouldn't be getting the Ron you love if I sit here and do nothing. I am sorry for everything, and I know I can't possibly understand everything you've been through. And as much as I would love to go to bed with you right now, there is something I would love to do even more."

"What's that?" Courtney asked

"Do all of that with you six years ago." Ron replied. "I want to do that with the world not about to end, while your family is still alive, while the Justice Society is still alive. I want to hold you and know that I've never broken your heart, and never will."

After a moment Courtney turned and looked up at Ron.

"You promise?"

"You have my word." Ron smiled, wiping the tears off her cheek with his thumb.

Courtney returned the smile, reaching up to kiss Ron as she did so.

"Go." Courtney said softly after the kiss was broken. Ron simply nodded and made his way out the door.

Once in the hallway, Ron made his way towards the airlock where he and Courtney had first come in. Given the time of night, he didn't encounter many other people, which left him alone with his thoughts.

He wondered if he would be as cynical as everyone else if he had been around for everything that had happened. Part of him refused to believe that he would ever readily accept the end, the way his friends and allies had. Another part of him, however, could sympathize with their plight. He had wanted to give up after his mother's murder; it was only Kim's support that kept him going at first. It was hard for Ron to imagine losing everyone you cared about, including the support system that would help a person through something like that.

"If you're trying to get out of here, you should have taken a left about two hundred feet back."

Ron stopped and turned around to face Cissie, who was standing several feet behind him, carrying a medium sized cardboard box in her arms and wearing a smirk on her face.

"Sorry, I'm new in town. Would you care to show me the way?" Ron asked as he walked up to her.

"Of course." Cissie said as she began walking in the other direction. Ron fell in step alongside her, wondering how he got so turned around. "Don't feel bad, this place is like a maze until you get used to it."

"Yeah, I kept looking for one of those, 'You are here' signs, but no such luck."

"Funny." Cissie laughed, leading Ron into the corridor he should have taken.

"What are you doing wandering the halls?" Ron asked

"Looking for you actually." Cissie admitted. "I was hoping to catch you before you left, so I headed for the airlock. I waited you out for about ten minutes, then decided to come looking for you."

"You're not going to try and talk me out of this are you?" Ron asked, glancing at Cissie. "I kind of got the impression you were the only one in that room who thought this was a good idea."

"Oh, I'm not, and I do. You think I've enjoyed these last few years? I would give anything to change things, and if you think you can do that, well, rock on."

"I'm glad I have at least one supporter." Ron smiled. "So what are you doing then?"

"Well, you see, I've got this box here." Cissie said, nodding down at the box she carried in front of her with both arms. "This box that you probably should have offered to carry for me. You being a gentleman hero and all."

"Oh, whoops. May I take your box Cissie?" Ron asked sheepishly.

Cissie laughed and unloaded the box into Ron's open arms.

"It's yours anyways."

Ron peered down into the box to find his lantern inside.

"Oh, hey thanks." Ron said. "A good charge probably couldn't hurt before I go. Might I ask what you are doing with this though?"

"Well Courtney had it for as long as we've been here." Cissie explained. "She must have picked it up from your place once everything started going downhill. A few years ago, Degaton decided to wipe out the remaining members of the JSA. He killed Hourman and Wildcat, and erased Jakeem's memory of his Thunderbolt. Hell, he probably erased someone else from history too, but we don't remember."

"After that Courtney kind of lost it for a little bit." Cissie continued. "She had already lost her real family, and you. The JSA was all she had left, her little slice of normal, you know? Anyway, she cleaned out everything that reminded her of you, her family, or the JSA. She put it all in this box and threw it away. Cassie and I kept it, because we knew she would want it back."

"You and Cassie, you two helped her through that?" Ron asked softly.

"Of course, what are friends for? After she had calmed down and was back to normal we tried to give her the box back, but the only things she took were those pictures she has up, and that shirt of yours. We still held on to this though, just in case."

"Thanks Cissie." Ron said as the finally reached the airlock. "Not just for holding on to this, but for being there for Courtney."

"Hey, like I said, what are friends for?"

"I know, I just wish that…"

"That what, you were here?" Cissie cocked her eyebrow. "You would either be dead, or wallowing in your own misery like the rest of the Just Us League back there. You weren't here though, and that's why you can stop all this. So don't start with the woe is me shit. Just get out there and change history."

"Wow, go team!" Ron smiled at Cissie's motivational speech. "Stand back for a minute."

Cissie stepped back as Ron reached into the box and pulled out his lantern. Despite a little dust it looked exactly the same as it did when he left. He held it out in front of him and pressed his ring into the side. One sacred oath and a flash of light later, Green Lantern stood ready to go with a fully charged power ring.

"You can keep that." Lantern said as he put the lantern back into the box. "I'll just grab it in the past."

"That's the spirit." Cissie grinned, motioning Ron into the airlock. "Good luck GL."

Lantern gave her thumbs up as the door slid closed. Cissie activated the controls that would fill the room with water and let the Green Lantern out into what remained of the world.

-GL-

Lantern flew low through the deserted and debris filled streets of New York. He doubted that his status as a time anomaly would help him avoid detection by traditional means of surveillance. Therefore he dimmed his glow, flew low, and kept his ring scanning for anything that might bring him trouble.

As he zipped through the city, Lantern asked his ring to locate the largest source of power in the area. As it turned out, Degaton's palace wasn't just the largest source of power in the area; it was the only source of power in the area, other than Titans Island. Once the ring had him going in the right direction, it became obvious where Degaton was holed up. Aside from the few flickering fires in the city streets and buildings there was no light in the once proud city. On the horizon however sat Degaton's palace, which from the distance resembled a rising sun.

The palace sat across the Hudson River from the Bronx, in the Fort Lee section of New Jersey. The building looked more like a pyramid than it did a palace. It was a giant gold covered building, ten stories high, with the ground floor stretching out for several city blocks, while each level after that grew smaller. The top floor had a dome rather than a point for a ceiling.

Lantern surveyed the perimeter, making sure to keep his distance as best he could. Amazingly enough there were no guards outside the palace. In fact, as Lantern looked closer, there seemed to be no security measures at all.

Lantern sighed as he considered his options. Stealth had never been his strongest suit, and he highly doubted he would be able to get in and out without running into any trouble. On the other hand, who knew what would happen if he just blasted through the front door, ring a blazin'. He thought about blasting in through the dome, but that was sure to draw attention, and if that wasn't where Degaton was, he could miss his chance completely.

"Oh, the hell with it." Lantern muttered to himself as he flew towards the building. He opted against the front door, instead using his ring to phase himself through the outer wall, near the top of the building. He was basing his plan on the assumption that Degaton kept the Tempus Simia close to him at all times, and also that his chambers would be on the top floor.

Lantern landed softly on the marble floor of an empty hallway. The hallway was well lit, with a long straightaway before it turned. The walls were smooth, with no visible doorways.

"Ring," Lantern whispered. "Can you locate Degaton?"

_Negative. Temporal energy readings are obscuring life signs._

"Hmm. Where is the highest concentration of temporal energy?"

_One story up, center of the structure. _

'Good bet that's Degaton.' Lantern thought to himself as he floated down the hallway. He reached the end of the hallway and turned left, finding himself staring down another long hallway. 'Must go all the way around.'

Lantern turned towards the inner wall and tried to phase through, but was turned away with a slight shock. He shook the tingling from the hand he had tried to pass through the wall and glared at the obstruction.

"Alright, plan B." GL said as he flew down the hallway scanning the inner wall with his ring. He stopped in the middle of the hallway when the ring alerted him to a slight difference in the structure. Upon closer inspection Lantern could see tiny lines where a door was hidden.

Lantern formed a giant construct sledgehammer and swung it hard with both hands. The wall that could not be phased through didn't hold up as well against the mighty hammer. The door crumbled inwards with a loud crunch, hitting the marble floor with a thud that echoed down the hallways.

Picking up his pace Lantern flew through the door into another hallway. He sped through the hallway before it finally opened into a large room near what he assumed was the middle of the building. In addition to the hallway Lantern had taken, three other hallways emptied into this room.

Lantern floated into the middle of the room, wondering if he could blast his way through the ceiling here. The sound of heavy boots thundering across the marble floor brought GL's eyes back towards the ground. His shoulders slumped slightly as four groups of shock troopers came charging into the room, one group from each hallway.

A trooper wearing black armor with a crimson D led each squad into the room. The troop commander each gave their squad a hand signal to stop, which the troops did, training their weapons on GL as they did so.

"Unknown meta human!" One of the commanders called. "You will surrender!"

"It's Green Lantern pal, and surrender is something we Green Lanterns don't do very well." GL replied, clenching his fists.

"I was hoping you would say that!" One of the other commanders called out in a female voice. In one fluid motion she flipped her blaster over and threw it by the barrel across the room.

The blaster struck the commander who had demanded GL's surrender square in the face, knocking him backwards into his troopers. As soon as the female commander had thrown her weapon the other two commanders had dropped their blasters and spun around, attacking their own troops with a volley of well placed kicks and punches.

"What the hell?" Lantern said in astonishment.

"You gonna float around up there and be surprised, or you gonna come down here and help?" The female commander yelled up to GL as she back flipped away from her squad. When she landed she fired a handful of tiny throwing stars back at the squad, disarming five of the troopers.

Lantern smiled slightly and dove down towards the group of troopers whose commander had not turned on them. He whipped up a construct shield on his way down, placing it in between his new allies and the troopers. They opened fire just as the shield appeared, and the ricochets off the shield sent troopers diving out of the way and ducking for cover.

Taking advantage of the confusion, Lantern burst through the shield, knocking out the commander with a right cross. Another trooper jumped up from the ground and took a lazy swing at Lantern, which was easily blocked, and countered with another right cross and a sidekick to the gut.

"You have no idea how good this feels boys." Lantern said to the troops as he disarmed a pair with a construct lasso. He tossed their blasters aside then formed a pair of giant construct hands, which grabbed the troopers by their heads, knocking them together. "I've been wanting to bust some heads since I found out about this crazy future."

Lantern felt another trooper approaching from behind. He caught the would be assailant in the chest with his left elbow, then spun left, using his momentum to deliver a powerful uppercut. The move left him facing away from the remaining four troopers, and one of them took advantage, blasting Lantern in the back with his weapon.

"Ungh!" Lantern grunted, stumbling forward to his knees as another blast caught him square in the back.

"Hey!" Lantern looked up to see the female commander charging at him. Without saying anything else she threw two more stars, disarming the two troopers who still had their weapons. As she did that she launched herself into a flying kick straight at Lantern's head. Acting on instinct Lantern grabbed her ankle at the moment when her foot was about six inches from his face and swung the woman over his right shoulder.

The woman used the momentum to do a complete 360-degree turn, ending it with a powerful kick to one of the troopers' head. The felled trooper went one direction, while the woman went in the other. She fell backwards into a handspring and redirected herself, feet first, towards the nearest trooper. Both feet connected with the nearest trooper's chest, driving him hard into the ground. This left two troopers standing, both of who seemed amazed by the physical prowess of their former commander. So transfixed were they with her, they didn't even notice the construct billy clubs until they were smashed in the forehead by them.

As they fell to the ground unconscious, Lantern glanced over his shoulder to find all of the other troopers in the same condition. The other two traitors were walking towards him, but Lantern's focus was on the woman.

"I was hoping you would remember that move." The woman said.

"That's a hard one to forget, and one I don't want to screw up, for the sake of my head. The finish has a new twist to it though, that was fancy." Lantern replied, a smile spreading across his face.

"Well I've had a lot of time to practice and refine it."

"So it's true what they say. Practice does make perfect…KP."

The woman reached up and pulled off her helmet, causing her fiery red hair to spill out. The hair was shorter now, shoulder length to be exact, and the face was older, but still beautiful. Her deep green eyes still blazed with a warrior's intensity, but the large smile on Kim Possible's face revealed her joy.

Kim quickly closed the distance between the two and they embraced in a tight hug.

"Oh Kim…they told me you were dead." Lantern said softly, not wanting the embrace to end.

"Funny, they said the same thing about you." Kim replied, feeling the same way about the hug as her long lost best friend.

When they finally pulled apart Lantern rubbed this chin thoughtfully, taking in the new look Kim.

"Not so sure about the hair KP, but you look pretty good…for an old lady."

"Ha! Whatever you say, kiddo." Kim shot back with a smirk.

"Alright, that's enough, we need to move." One of the other commanders said from behind in a gruff voice.

"Hey I know that voice!" Lantern said as he turned to face the pair behind him. "Batman! Nightwing!"

Like Kim, Batman and Nightwing had taken their helmets off, revealing their normal masks. Batman's trademark scowl remained, but Nightwing cracked a small smile as he slapped Lantern on the arm.

"Good to see you GL, but we do need to get moving. We've scrambled communications and taken out surveillance but they won't be out long."

"This way." Batman said, leading the group towards the hallway that went left of the way Lantern had come in.

"Question?" Lantern asked, raising his hand in the air like a school child as he fell in step behind Batman and Nightwing. "Well actually, a lot of questions."

"Questions like, how are we alive, why aren't we with the other survivors, and aren't we going to blow your cover?" Kim asked.

"Uh, well, yeah."

"Well for starters we all survived the initial attack and regrouped in the bat cave. As you know, the day was lost pretty quick, quicker than we could form a plan, let alone a counter attack." Kim explained. "After much…debate, it was decided we lay low until we had a solid plan. Everyone thought we were dead, so it was unlikely Degaton would seek us out in the timeline."

"We've spent the last few years training, and developing a technology that would shield us from Degaton, keep us out of the picture whenever he pokes around time and space."

"I take it that's how you infiltrated his ranks?"

"And they call us the detectives." Nightwing joked.

They paused in the middle of the corridor at a seemingly blank section of wall. Batman pressed his hand against it, and the wall slid away, revealing a stairway.

"Good thing you guys showed up, I would have never found this." Lantern remarked as they climbed the stairs.

"We know," Batman said seriously.

"You didn't think it was a coincidence we showed up here did you?" Kim asked.

"Wait, you knew I was coming? How?"

"We have eyes and ears on Titans Island." Nightwing responded. "We have them closely monitored. If they were ever to move against Degaton, it would have provided us an opportunity to get to the idol."

"But as you found out, there isn't much get up and go over there anymore."

"Yeah, that's the truth." Lantern said sadly.

"Alright, we're almost here." Batman said. He stood five steps from a door that Lantern assumed led to Degaton.

"So what's the plan boss?" Lantern asked.

"Do what you came here to do." Batman replied. "Destroy the idol, but be careful of Degaton. He may not be able to erase you from the time line, but he is still powerful, and keeps the Tempus Simia close."

"Leave the troopers to us. He should be too busy with you to worry about us, which will allow us to keep them off of you while you do what's needed." Nightwing added.

"Here, take this." Batman handed Lantern a silver tube, roughly a foot long and an inch in diameter. It was shiny and sleek, with one red button on it. "It's a boom tube generator, set to take you back to Titans Island. There's no telling what's going to happen when you destroy that idol so you'll need to get back there fast. The Flash will be waiting for you."

"Alright." Green Lantern said, taking the device and sliding it into the inside of his right gauntlet. "Everybody ready?"

"We've been ready for six years." Kim said, wearing a look of anxious determination on her face. "Let's do this."

Lantern floated by the others and to the top step.

"On my mark." Batman said, taking position behind Green Lantern.

"Now!"

Lantern's ring pulsated with energy as he delivered a blast that blew apart the door and the surrounding wall. He burst through the hole into Degaton's throne room, which was a wide-open space that took up the entire floor. In the center, on a raised podium sat Degaton, the Tempus Simia resting on the floor next to him. The room also contained roughly a hundred shock troops.

"Degaton!" Lantern yelled as he shot towards the villain, who leapt up from his chair in surprise. Degaton grabbed the Tempus Simia and dove away from an emerald energy blast that destroyed his throne.

Degaton tumbled off the podium and hit the ground below, rolling behind the podium to avoid another energy blast. On the other side he righted himself and used his flying discs to levitate up to Green Lantern's level.

"How are you here?" Degaton demanded angrily. The villain now wore a thick red beard and his face was starting to show age lines. As Degaton stared at him, Lantern thought his eyes looked wide, unfocused, and somewhat bloodshot. They were not the eyes of a focused dictator, but of a madman consumed and corrupted by power. If this reality was indeed doomed to collapse, it appeared to the Green Lantern that collapse had already started with Degaton.

"Don't concern yourself with how I'm here Degaton." Lantern said. "Worry about why I'm here, which is to take the time monkey!"

"You dare?" Degaton laughed. He slid the idol into a large pouch on his right thigh and snapped it shut. "You honestly think that you can…unnnh!"

Degaton's posturing was cut short as Lantern closed the distance between them and punched him in the jaw, sending the villain tumbling backwards.

Degaton stared back at him wide eyed and rubbing his jaw.

"What's the matter Degaton? Not used to taking a punch?"

If Degaton had an answer Lantern gave him no chance to respond. A construct clamp wrapped around his arms and torso, squeezing him tight. Lantern zipped in and delivered two more quick punches to his face before reaching towards the pouch that contained the idol. Degaton lashed out with his right leg, catching Lantern in the jaw. The blow distracted Lantern enough for Degaton to break free of the construct and draw his blaster, which he fired rapidly at Lantern.

"I hope you enjoyed this Green Lantern." Degaton said as he wiped blood from his lip with his left hand, his right still firing his blaster. "Because you are about to be wiped from history like the stain that you are!"

"Let me know how that works out!" Lantern called from behind a construct shield that was absorbing the few blasts that were on target. Degaton stopped firing and reached down to touch the Tempus Simia. He closed his eyes, but snapped them open moments later, his expression a mixture of surprise and horror.

"Impossible! You don't exist!"

"I guess that explains why I had such a hard time getting a date in high school." Lantern quipped as he disarmed Degaton with a construct shuriken. "Existential debates aside, I'm still taking that idol!"

"No, no no." Degaton muttered, shaking his head. "Troopers!"

Lantern glanced down as fifty more troopers appeared out of thin air below him. They all opened fire on him.

"Ah crap." Lantern said to himself as he launched into some evasive maneuvers. He deflected as many blasts as he could while weaving his way in and out of other blasts. He dove towards the ground, zipping in between the other troopers who were engaged in combat with the Kim and the dynamic duo.

The new troopers fired with little regard for their comrades. They fired into the crowds of troopers, taking many of them out as Lantern weaved his way through them. With the troopers shooting themselves, Lantern got a chance to focus on something other than evasive maneuvers. He used the chance to make a construct bulldozer that plowed through the fifty new troopers, sending them flying and diving all over the room.

Lantern emerged from the mass of troopers and landed on the throne podium, looking around for Degaton.

"I don't know how you have removed yourself from time, nor do I know how your friends here have escaped my detection until now, but I do remember you." Degaton said as he appeared behind Lantern. "You broke Courtney Whitmore's heart when you left for the stars, Ron Stoppable. It was something that gave me great pleasure to watch over the years."

"You sick son of a bitch." Lantern growled as he lifted off the podium. His flight was short lived though as a powerful hand wrapped around his ankle and pulled him back down. He was then grabbed by the shoulder and spun around, finding himself face to face with Shego.

With nothing but a smile Shego ignited her hand and punched Lantern hard across the jaw, sending him tumbling backwards into Monkey Fist.

"I may not be able to find you in the time stream, but I can certainly find some of your old playmates." Degaton said with a hearty laugh as Monkey Fist kicked Lantern hard in the ribs, sending him off the podium, and to the ground below.

Before Lantern could get up from the ground, both of his arms were pinned to the ground by glowing yellow shackles. He looked to his left to see another Monkey Fist approaching, this one wearing a yellow power ring and grinning from furry ear to furry ear.

"Oh this is too precious. I hope the princess can make her way over to see this!"

GL glanced to his right to find another Shego approaching. This version of Shego wore a black domino mask and a costume that was entirely green, except for her boots and gloves, which were black. What caught Lantern's eye though was a jet-black lantern symbol on her chest.

"You like?" Shego asked, noticing GL's gaze. "I thought it would be appropriate. I've learned such wonderful things you see."

To emphasize her point Shego created a construct crow bar in her hand.

"Neat trick." Commented the other Shego as her and Monkey Fist dropped down from the podium. The four villains circled Green Lantern as he struggled against his bonds.

"I don't suppose we could talk this out?" Lantern asked hopefully. "See I'm kind of like the only hope to save all of time and space, and it would be sooo cool of you guys to help me out. In the spirit of not being destroyed by the collapse of time?"

The Monkey Fist with the power ring spoke for the quartet of villains.

"If my existence ends the moment you take your last breath, it will have all been worth it."

With that statement the four attacked the Green Lantern in a maneuver that could only be described as a dog pile on the Green Lantern.

-GL-

"I'm starting to regret leaving Robin behind to monitor communications." Nightwing shouted to Kim.

"Oh, because four on a hundred would make all the difference in the world?" Kim asked through gritted teeth.

"You never know babe, you never know." Nightwing responded as he threw an escrima stick that ricocheted off the heads of three troopers before returning to his hand. "We need to work our way back to Batman and regroup. Follow me!"

"Something tells me these guys aren't going to give us much time to regroup, but I like the strength in numbers idea." Kim said, weaving her way through the crowd after Nightwing.

When the trio had burst in behind Green Lantern they had split up, to divide the enemy's focus. Using a variety of smoke bombs, flash bangs, and other gadgets, they had initially gained the upper hand. However they were running out of weapons, and the sudden appearance of more shock troopers had shifted the tide of battle.

The extra troopers had appeared closest to Kim, and after being scattered by Green Lantern's bulldozer they had turned their efforts towards her. This had forced her backwards, where she found Nightwing. The two held their ground for several minutes before the sheer numbers forced Nightwing's idea to regroup.

Now they cut their path through the troopers, working their way towards Batman. If anyone had been watching them they would have been impressed by the fluidity of their movements, and while most of them were spontaneous, their grace and skill made it look choreographed.

They dodged what needed to be dodged, and delivered attacks of their own whenever it was prudent. They had to keep moving in order to avoid the constant barrage of blaster fire, so every offensive strike had to count. Each blow was delivered with extreme prejudice and in a way designed to do the most damage.

After what seemed like an eternity they reached Batman, and the two-headed monster became three headed.

"This way." Batman said, indicating the way he had been moving. "Green Lantern has gone down, we need to get to him."

Batman continued his push forward with Nightwing by his side, and Kim covering their backs. They wordlessly weaved their way through the throng of soldiers, the silence broken only when Kim informed them she was out of smoke bombs.

"Out of flash bangs." Kim declared sadly, moments later. "And everything else."

"Same." Nightwing said, checking his equipment.

"Same." Batman added, doing the same.

Their forward progress slowed considerably without any distractions to cover their tracks. Soon the progress was halted completely as the three found themselves forced into defensive maneuvers.

Kim ducked a wild swing from a trooper and threw him over her head, hoping he would crash into several more troopers. Instead the trooper flew hard into a wall, which Kim had not realized was behind her.

"No…" Kim muttered. "Guys?"

"We know." Batman said.

The three stood literally with their backs against the wall, surrounded on the other three sides by shock troopers who were now backing up, leaving a fairly wide bubble of open space between them.

As those troopers held the line, a group of fresh troopers pushed their way through the crowd and to the front. They stepped in front of the others and leveled their blasters at the three heroes, but they did not fire.

"I should have known I hadn't heard the last of you Batman." Degaton said as he floated down to where he was just above the heads of his troopers. "Of course it would take more than a simple earthquake to kill the Batman. Now for a death that…"

Degaton stopped mid-sentence and squinted, looking around. Kim and Nightwing looked at each other in confusion, before they too heard what had caused Degaton to stop. It was a low high-pitched whine, and it seemed to be coming from the wall behind them.

"What the hell is that?" Kim whispered.

"The cavalry." Nightwing smiled.

"Down!" Batman ordered, grabbing his two partners and forcing them to the ground as the wall behind them exploded inwards. The loud whine was now an ear-piercing scream.

Dinah Queen stepped through the hole in the wall and dropped to one knee, holding her throat.

"Been awhile since I've done that," she rasped.

The force of her "canary cry" had sent Degaton and his troops flying backwards, giving the heroes a momentary reprieve. Batman helped Dinah to her feet, as Nightwing did with Kim.

Suddenly their circle was filled with superheroes. Green Arrow and Arrowette stepped through the hole, firing arrow after arrow into the throng of recovering troopers.

An Amazonian battle cry preceded Wonder Woman and Wonder Girl as they burst through, each in full battle armor, with swords drawn. They headed straight for the enemy troopers and began slicing through blasters, armor, and flesh.

Star Woman flew in behind them, blasting away at the shock troopers with her cosmic rod. Plastic Man, the Blue Beetle and Cyborg stepped through the opening and joined the group.

"This way!" Nightwing commanded, pointing in the direction they had been headed. "Green Lantern went down, we have to reach him before Degaton recovers!"

The Amazon warriors heard the order and adjusted their attack, cutting a path through the enemy formations as they headed in the direction Nightwing had indicated.

"How did you know to come?" Batman asked Dinah as they resumed the battle.

"A little birdie called us and said we might be able to use your offensive to get ourselves in unnoticed." Dinah responded, her voice still harsh.

"And to think, you wanted Robin here with us!" Nightwing grinned playfully at Kim. "I told you it was a good idea to leave him back at the Cave, monitoring communications."

"Oh, whatever Boy Wonder!" Kim laughed and shook her head, then looked upwards as she felt a gentle breeze blow through her hair.

"You look pretty good for a dead woman." Star Woman smirked down at her long "dead" friend.

"Well being dead is no reason to not look cute." Kim grinned at Stars. "Speaking of cute, I love what you've done with your uniform."

"Thanks. Well I would love to stay and catch up, but I'm gonna go see if I can't help to erase this whole crappy existence."

"Good luck Court." Kim called. "See you in the past!"

"Count on it Kim!" Star Woman laughed as she flew off ahead to lay down a suppressing fire with her rod. She had another laugh as she flew into position, realizing the irony of the situation. For the first time in six years Stars had something to be happy about, with the return of her boyfriend and finding out Kim lives. Instead of celebrating their returns though, she was fighting in a battle that would probably get them all killed.

The group of heroes pushed forward, inching closer to where Green Lantern was locked in battle. Donna and Cassie led the way on the ground, hacking and slashing their way through just enough troopers to clear the way and keep moving. Star Woman did her part by flying ahead and blasting away at large groups of troopers. It forced them to scatter, keeping them off balance and unable to offer much resistance when the Amazons came cutting through.

Across the room Degaton watched in amazement. He had destroyed everything these heroes held dear, defeated them, and completely demoralized them. Yet here they were in his citadel fighting a battle they could not hope to win.

"It will almost be a shame to erase them all from history." Degaton said to himself as he rose up from the ground and reached for the time monkey. "Almost."

"That will be quite enough!" Degaton shouted above the din of battle. Several of the heroes, including Star Woman turned towards him. "This ends now!"

"You're damn right it does!" Green Lantern shouted as he shot up from the ground in a burst of green light. In his right hand he held the power ring wielding Monkey Fist by his tail, and in his left he held the dark lantern Shego by the front of her tattered uniform. Both were unconscious.

"No more games." Lantern growled, as he tossed his defeated foes aside. His uniform was torn in several places and his left sleeve was missing completely. All that remained on his left arm was half of his gauntlet and his glove. Blood flowed freely from several visible wounds, and dark stains on his uniform told of wounds that were out of sight.

"Hey babe, glad you could make it." Lantern said to Star Woman through gritted teeth. He didn't take his eyes off of Degaton.

"I couldn't let you have all the fun honey." Stars responded as she floated slowly towards Degaton.

"You know, Green Lantern, I think we do have time for one more little game." Degaton grinned. He reached down and touched the Tempus Simia, vanishing for a split second. When he reappeared, he was directly behind Star Woman.

Degaton grabbed her right arm from behind and broke it at the elbow. Star Woman cried out in agony as her cosmic rod dropped to the ground below. Degaton put his left arm around her neck, pulling her mask off with his right hand, revealing Courtney's face, which was contorted in agony.

"Now you get to see your lovely girlfriend wiped out of existence." Degaton laughed as Courtney struggled against his grip.

"Or maybe you can watch something else first." Degaton grinned as he ran his right hand across Courtney's inner thigh.

Lantern let out a low growl as he started towards Degaton.

"Ah, ah ah!" Degaton said, moving his hand quickly towards the idol, stopping Lantern in his tracks.

"Let her go you bastard." Lantern demanded. He locked eyes with Courtney, who began glancing downwards towards her right hand. Her right arm hung useless at her side, but it had been broken so that her palm was facing back towards Degaton's thigh. Facing the Idol.

"I don't think I will let her go." Degaton smiled. He reached into his tunic and pulled out a large dagger that looked to be from the medieval times. Degaton took the dagger and quickly swiped it across Courtney's stomach, tearing her uniform and drawing blood as the blade broke the skin.

Courtney again cried out in pain. Despite her best efforts to fight them back, tears began to roll down her cheeks as Degaton put his hand on her stomach and pressed on the fresh wound. He held his hand there for a moment before sliding it upwards, using the tear in the uniform to get his hand underneath the material.

"Yes, I think I'll keep your little girlfriend around, she has aged nicely after all." Degaton said to Green Lantern. He then added, with a laugh, "well, I've always wondered if you women heroes wore bras under your spandex. Now I know!"

Lantern's eyes and power ring burned with rage. It was taking so much will power to hold back that his ring was actually pulsating, with sparks of green energy shooting off of it, like an overloaded transformer. His eyes met with Courtney's, and despite the tears, she gave him the look he was waiting for. Courtney was ready, and Degaton was distracted.

"I said let her go…now!"

As Lantern yelled "now" Courtney fired a shooting star from her otherwise useless right arm. The blast incinerated Degaton's pouch, sending the idol plummeting towards the ground.

"No!" Degaton shouted, pushing Courtney away from as he dove towards the idol.

"Oh yes!" Lantern shouted, firing an energy blast at the idol, shattering it into a million pieces. At the same time he sent a giant construct battering ram that blasted Degaton, smashing him into the far wall. Then, quickly, he constructed a baseball mitt to catch Courtney just before she hit the ground.

Almost immediately the citadel began to rumble and shake. Large chunks of the ceiling and walls began to crumble and fall, while other sections disappeared altogether. Large groups of shock troopers began to vanish as well.

"Lantern! The boom tube, now!" Batman shouted over the sound of time collapsing.

Lantern reached into his gauntlet and produced the device. He activated the boom tube, which could barely be heard over everything else. He gave one last glace at Kim, who smiled at him proudly, before embracing Nightwing as they prepared for the end of their existence. He then looked to Courtney, who mouthed the words "I love you". Lantern returned the sentiment and dashed into the portal.

-GL-

"I hope your big plan isn't time consuming!" Wally West shouted at Green Lantern as the battered hero teleported into the lab on Titans Island. Things were falling apart rapidly there as well. "Palmer got the treadmill set up, then he just vanished!"

"Guess it's time to go then. Ready to run?" Lantern asked, as he pointed his ring at Wally. He closed his eyes and forced as much willpower into the ring as he could possibly muster. When he opened his eyes Wally stood before him with two glowing emerald legs.

"Unreal." Wally muttered, lifting and flexing his legs, which reacted as if they were made of his own flesh and blood.

"Let's go!" Lantern yelled, hustling Wally onto the cosmic treadmill.

"Speed Force don't fail me now!" Wally said as he began to run. A smile spread across his face as he felt the energy rushing through him. It felt so good to run again.

"Where to?"

Lantern leaned in and gave Wally the location and the date of the second week of school for his junior year. It was the last thing Wally heard before the treadmill and its occupants vanished into the time stream.

To be concluded…

-GL-

Hey everybody. Well here is another update, which took a lot longer than it should have, and for that I apologize. Next chapter finds Ron in the past, where he will try to stop Degaton yet again. So tune in next time as Ron runs into some familiar faces, including someone that hasn't been around in quite some time. I hope you enjoyed the chapter and hopefully you'll take the time to leave a review. Until next time, take care.

-R


	26. Future Imperfect Part 3

Chapter 26

The sun hung high in the mid-day sky over the thick jungles of Central Africa. It was the type of summer day in which everything appeared in a haze, shimmering the way a desert mirage would, just before turning back into a sand dune. The sky was bright blue, without a cloud in sight, as if the clouds themselves wanted nothing to do with the heat.

The floor of the jungle wasn't any cooler, despite the shade provided by the various trees and vines. The air was thick with humidity, and strangely enough, electricity. A small clearing suddenly crackled and popped with electrical energy, sending monkeys scurrying away, screeching as they fled. A glowing white ball of energy appeared roughly two meters off the ground, before rapidly expanding with a loud pop. Just before the energy ball vanished it unceremoniously dropped one Green Lantern down to the ground.

"Yeah, ouch." Lantern muttered rubbing the back of his head. He opened his eyes and sat up, staring straight at a medium sized howler monkey. Lantern smiled, "are you John Connor?"

The monkey's response was an ear-piercing howl as he began to jump up and down in place. The monkey then turned away from the Green Lantern and bounded away, up a tree, howling the whole time.

"Hmm, maybe he is John Connor." Lantern chuckled as he stood up and began to dust himself off, before dubbing the efforts futile. His uniform was torn in several places and blood stained in several more. A little jungle dirt was the least of his concerns.

'Looks like I'm in the right where, I just need to figure out when I am.' Lantern thought as he floated off the ground, heading towards the canopy of treetops above him. He navigated his way through the thick branches and vines. He gave a wave to John Connor and several other hooting monkeys as he passed them.

Lantern burst through the trees and into the sky. Sweat immediately began to bead on his brow as he surveyed the jungle in all directions. He didn't have exact coordinates to give Wally, just a general location and a time period, which meant he could be miles away from where he wanted to be.

"A ridge." Lantern muttered, thinking back to the last time he was in this jungle. He began to fly in a circular pattern, moving outward from his current location. In a way Lantern found it strange, drawing on memories that he didn't have four days ago. On the other hand, strange was starting to become run of the mill ever since he slid that ring onto his finger. "And speaking of strange…"

Lanterns search came to a satisfying conclusion as he spotted the large stone monkey head staring out over the jungle from its perch. He floated down towards the clearing, making sure to stay out of sight near the treetops. Once he found a nice vantage point Lantern began surveying the area. He wanted to wait until the villains showed up, so he could destroy every piece of the Tempus Simia. Through the lenses of construct binoculars he spotted a small aircraft parked at the edge of the clearing, near the temple. He was about to move towards the temple when the sound of breaking branches behind him captured his attention.

"Ron?" The voice drifted up to Green Lantern soon after he heard a loud thud.

"Sorry I'm late, this elephant totally copped a 'tude with me!"

'Yeah, this…this takes the strange cake right here.' Lantern thought to himself as he watched a younger version of himself brushing dirt from his clothes and apologizing to Kim.

"Ron, it's cool. You're right on time."

"Wow."

"The Tempus Simia Temple is just over that ridge." Kim said, pointing in the direction of the temple.

Kim took the lead, clearing a path with her machete. Ron, as he always did, fell in a step behind her. The two talked softly to each other the entire way, gabbing about school, tests, cheerleading, and Ron's hatred of all things Norwegian. Their banter suggested a lighthearted nature hike, not a mission to save the free world.

Lantern smiled as he floated above and behind them. He felt a longing for the good old days, back before magic rings, awesome responsibility, and deadlier villains. His longing faded into full on sadness as he watched Rufus scramble out of young Ron's pocket and onto his shoulder.

Lantern maintained his distance as he followed young Team Possible through the jungle and to the entrance of the monkey temple. Kim and Ron briefly discussed a game plan before they crept through the dark entrance. This left Green Lantern in a bit of a predicament. He had to destroy the idol, but he also had to stop Degaton.

If he destroyed the idol first, Degaton could just show up, then go back in time and get it before Lantern. But if he stopped Degaton, and Shego still got away with the idol, wouldn't the time stream be polluted? But hadn't she already used it to send his younger self to Norway?

"Holy crap." Lantern moaned, massaging his temples. "Man, I just want to go home. This time travel stuff is for the birds."

Still weighing his options, Lantern decided to position himself near the temple entrance. That way, he figured, he could keep an eye on the battle inside, and watch for Degaton outside.

Then, for the first time in what seemed like years, Green Lantern found luck on his side. Below him, heading towards the temple entrance, floating on his discs, was Degaton. The time traveling villain was clad in his black trench coat, and looked pleased with himself. This wasn't the power mad tyrant Lantern had just fought, but he would be if Lantern didn't stop him now.

The image of Courtney, bloodied, her arm broken, being held by Degaton filled Lanterns mind. It was time to end this all, before it could begin.

"Surprise asshole." Lantern said to himself as he reached back and sent a large construct star hurtling towards Degaton.

-GL-

Inside the temple Kim and Ron had decided against the stealth approach, opting instead to boldly walk in and declare their intentions. This had, of course, led to a fight. The twist to this particular fight was the game of keep away involving the upper half of the Tempus Simia.

"Booyah!" Ron cried as he caught the stone monkey head, sent his way by a kick from Kim. He took off running towards the sunlight entrance, only to have his path blocked by the sneering forms of Shego and Dr. Drakken.

Ron's eyes widened as he skidded to a halt. He gave a glance over his shoulder and tossed the monkey head to where he knew Kim would be.

"Nice toss!" Kim hollered as she snatched the piece from the air. She had seen Drakken and Shego moving to intercept Ron, and relocated herself as well. Monkey Fist was only a step behind however, as he leapt down in front of Kim.

With a grunt Kim heaved the idol back to Ron, who was now covered by Duff Killigan. The pass was on target and Ron caught it one handed, went behind his back in one motion, and sent the idol back to Kim.

The pass sailed over Monkey Fist and right into Kim's waiting hands. Just as she caught it, she sent it back in the air. Monkey Fist and Duff Killigan both dashed to the idols likely landing spot. They both arrived before the idol, and like a pair of unskilled outfielders chasing down a fly ball they crashed into each other.

With a grin Ron caught the idol, rolling it down one outstretched arm, behind his neck, and down the other arm. Still grinning, he rolled it back up to his top arm, only to find Drakken standing in front of him, arms crossed with a disapproving look on his face.

Ron's grin only widened as he tossed the idol over his head and kicked it right back over his head and over a surprised Drakken. This time it was Rufus who caught the piece, and now it was his turn to show off. The mole rat spun the idol on his head before dropping to his back and kicking the idol through the legs of Drakken and back to Ron.

The dysfunction of the loose band of villains was apparent. Moments before Team Possible had crashed the party, the villains had been arguing over who should have the honor of holding the Tempus Simia together as the right time came and its magic powers were unleashed.

Now, despite their numbers, they were being beaten in a game of keep away by a duo that exuded teamwork. Kim and Ron dashed about the temple with the fluidity of a well-oiled machine. They displayed the type of chemistry only found in a relationship like theirs. A friendship built from the playground up, and strengthened in the halls of middle school and high school. In the places where gossip, cliques, and relationships tear many friendships asunder, theirs only grew. It was a friendship that was solidified as life long when they began saving the world on a regular basis

-GL-

The construct star caught Degaton off guard, and square in the back. It knocked him off his flying discs, and sent him face first into the jungle floor.

"You?" Degaton yelled as he rolled over to face his attacker. "What are you doing here?"

"Stopping you from getting that time monkey." Lantern answered as he floated over, dropping construct anvils on the floating discs, destroying them.

"How could you know about the Tempus Simia?" Degaton demanded, narrowing his eyes at GL. "No matter, I suppose…"

Degaton quickly jammed his hand into the folds of his tunic and produced a red and black pistol. He opened fire on Green Lantern, who created a construct shield. The shield was circular and featured a design like a no smoking sign, but with Degaton's face in place of the cigarette.

Lantern angled the shield so the energy blasts from Degatons' pistol ricochet away to the right. The blasts were powerful enough to shatter rocks and splinter trees, but Lantern was having no trouble blocking them.

"I've been to the future Degaton." Lantern growled as he began to angle his shield so that the deflected blasts were getting closer to Degaton. "I'll be perfectly honest, I really didn't like what you did with the place."

Degaton saw what Lantern was doing and ceased his firing. He scrambled to his feet and charged GL, regretting the maneuver immediately. Lantern dropped his shield and met Degatons' charge head on. He grabbed Degaton by the front of his tunic and went flying forward. There were roughly fifteen feet of space in between where the pair started and the entrance to the temple. Lantern covered the space in the blink of an eye, forcefully slamming his foe into the front wall of the temple, right next to the entrance.

Degaton yelped in agony as he crashed into the wall with enough force to crack the ancient stone. He opened his eyes to find Green Lanterns face inches from his own.

"You killed a lot of my friends." GL hissed. "What you did to the girl I love…tell me why I shouldn't kill you and leave you in this temple for the archaeologists."

"Because none of that happened you idiot." Degaton wheezed through the pain. "But it will!"

Degaton began to laugh, an action that was quickly stopped as Lantern delivered a hard right cross to his jaw. Degaton spit blood on the front of Green Lanterns uniform and smiled.

"So you've stopped me today. I'll just come back another time and get the idol. We both know you aren't going to kill me. But you'll wish you had someday. Someday when I make my way back here, and make all of time mine to manipulate. When I make you watch all the unspeakable things I'll do to Courtney…"

"Don't you dare speak her name!" Lantern yelled, punching Degaton again.

It took Degaton a moment longer, but he began to laugh again.

"We'll have a party. You and Pat Dugan, and all those ageless buffoons that treat her like a daughter. I'll invite Dr. Light. Not many people know what he's really capable of. But…"

"You son of a bitch!" Lantern growled. He cocked his fist back to deliver another blow to Degatons' face, when something from just inside the temple caught his attention.

"Ya know in this light, you're kinda cute."

It was his younger counterpart speaking to Shego, who had him pinned to the temple floor. Even though this particular mission happened a few years back, the memory of it was only a little more than a day old. Which meant Lantern knew exactly what was coming next.

Lantern turned back to Degaton, who was fighting to stay conscious.

"I'll be back for you." Lantern said as he brought several rocks floating over to him with his ring. He smashed the rocks into Degatons' wrists and ankles. He then used his ring to fuse the rocks to the temple wall. "I think that will hold you, but just to be safe…goodnight."

Lantern delivered one final haymaker, sending a couple of Degatons' teeth flying, as well as sending Degaton himself to dream land.

Lantern zipped into the temple, ready to put an end to his time traveling days.

"'Scuse me Duff." Lantern said as flew past the portly putter, who had just knocked the head of the Tempus Simia idol out of the air before Kim could catch it.

"Woah, what?" Kim Possible muttered as she watched the Green Lantern fly overhead. She had just broken into a slide to avoid being decapitated by Duff's golf swing. She rolled over and sprang to her feet, standing next to an equally confused Duff.

Monkey Fist stood atop a raised portion of the temple, where the body of the Tempus Simia sat. He raised his hands and caught the head, which had been perfectly delivered off the club of Duff Killigan.

Duff had delivered the head just in time for Monkey Fist to place the it on the body. The two parts had to be connected exactly at noon. Now, as the sun shone brightly down on him from an opening in the ceiling, Monkey Fist lowered the head and placed it on…a glowing green pillow.

"What! No!" Monkey Fist cried as the villainous smile faded from his face. He frantically pawed at the pillow, but it wouldn't budge.

"Sorry ugly, but I'm breaking up this reunion." Lantern said as he snatched the head out of Monkey Fists hands with a giant pair of construct tweezers.

"It can't be! I was so close! We had beaten Kim Possible!" Monkey Fist yelled as he looked up from the statue to the new hero who had crashed their party. "Who the…"

Fist's question was never finished, as the pillow on the idol body turned into a boxing glove on a spring. The glove shot upwards, connecting with Monkey Fists' jaw, knocking him off the platform, and onto the floor in an unconscious heap.

Kim looked on wide eyed as the Green Lantern stopped Monkey Fist from connecting the idol, then knocked the villain out, without moving from the spot he had floated since he burst in.

"Who's your friend lassie?" Duff asked over Kim's right shoulder. Kim responded by snapping her arm backwards. Her fist connected hard with Duffs nose, and with a crunch and a thud, Duff was disposed of.

Hearing the exchange, Lantern glanced over his shoulder at Kim. Lantern gave her a quick smile before turning around and heading towards the idol. Kim furrowed her brow at the strange familiarity of the smile.

"Shego, I think it might be wise if we took our leave now." Dr. Drakken whispered as he eased over to his sidekick.

"For once Dr. D, you are absolutely right." Shego responded, eyeing the Green Lantern suspiciously.

The two began creeping towards the exit, a task made easier by the fact that Kim seemed intently focused on the Green Lantern, who himself was focused on the pieces of the idol. The only thing that could prevent their escape was…

"The buffoon." Drakken moaned as Ron Stoppable placed himself between the villains and the exit. He stood with his hands on his hips, trying to look as heroic as he could.

"Thought you guys could sneak on out of here eh?" Ron asked. "Not while Ron Stoppable is, hey what are you doing? Oh, no…"

Ron could feel his big moment collapsing as Shego grabbed him by the front of the shirt. She pulled him close and gave him a smile before turning to Kim.

"Hey princess! You shouldn't take your eye off this one for too long, he might get hurt!"

"Ron!" Kim yelled as she turned away from the Green Lantern as Shego called out to her. "Let him go Shego!"

"No problem there Kimmie." Shego smiled.

"Whoa, hey, personal space!" Ron yelped as Shego reached down and grabbed Ron by the belt.

"I'll bet it is. Here you go Kimmie!"

With her grip on his belt and shirt, Shego easily lifted Ron into the air over her head. She took a couple of steps towards Kim, who was now charging towards Shego, and let Ron go.

"Ohhhh no! KP, look out!"

Kim skidded to a halt and tried to brace herself to catch Ron. He landed in her arms, but Kim couldn't maintain her balance. The two teens crashed to the floor in a heap as Shego and Drakken ran laughing out into the jungle.

Green Lantern shook his head and smiled. He had turned his head when Kim had called his name out. It was hard to describe the feeling of watching the sheer…Ronness of Drakken and Shego's escape. It felt to GL like watching an embarrassing home video. You know that it's you on the tape, but you barely recognize the person who shares your name and face.

"Hey hero, I appreciate the earlier assist, but maybe you could've, I dunno, stopped the bad guys from escaping?" Kim asked up to GL as she stood up and dusted herself off.

Lantern broke from his reminiscing and looked down at Kim, giving her a shrug.

"It doesn't matter." Lantern responded as he flew over and gathered up the two pieces of the Tempus Simia idol. Holding a piece in each hand, he floated down to the ground, just as Kim reached the basin of the platform.

"Doesn't matter?" Kim asked angrily. "Look, I don't know how you do things in the Justice League or whatever, but here in the real world, we usually try to capture the bad guys."

"What matters is that we got this idol." Lantern responded calmly.

"Ease off KP." Ron said as he came up beside his best friend. "Not only did we get the idol but we got Doof and Monkey Butt. Not bad for a days haul."

"You should listen to your friend." Lantern said, walking away from the pair and placing the pieces of the idol on the ground. "And like I said, it doesn't matter. At least it won't here in a couple of seconds."

"Wait, what are you doing?" Kim asked, glancing from GL to the idol.

"Well I'm going to use my ring here to make a giant hammer." Lantern responded, pointing to his ring. "Then I'm going to use the hammer to smash that idol."

"What! You can't do that! At least half of that belongs in a museum, and I'm sure they would be interested in the other half." Kim placed herself in between the idol and GL, crossing her arms.

"Look Indy, you don't understand. That thing has to be destroyed."

"Heh, Indy." Ron chortled, earning a glare from Kim.

"Kim, that thing has to be destroyed. It's a time traveling device that has already been used to alter the time stream. There are people who will stop at nothing to get it, people far more dangerous than anyone you and Ron have faced yet."

"Time travel? That's what this thing is all about?" Kim asked as she glanced back at the pieces of the idol. "Do you even know what will happen if you destroy this thing?"

"I have a pretty good idea, yeah."

Kim stared hard at the Green Lantern for several minutes. GL stood his ground, his gaze locked with her, while Ron glanced nervously between the two.

"You're from the future aren't you?" Kim finally asked.

"Yes."

"No way!" Ron cried, running up to GL. "What's it like? Do we have flying cars? Personal robots?"

"Uh, yeah. Not only that, but personal robots to fly our flying cars."

"Badical!" Ron cried. He reached into his pocket and pulled out Rufus. "Did you hear that little buddy? The future is gonna rock in stereo!"

Lantern looked after the pair sadly as Ron rattled on about the future and Rufus chattered excitedly.

"Look, Kim…" Lantern began as he turned back to Kim, who had picked up on something that bothered her about Green Lantern, but she couldn't place it. "I just want to go home."

"That idol was used by a very sick individual to turn the future into a very…unpleasant place. The only way to make sure that future never happens is by destroying the idol here, before the time steam gets too polluted."

"So by destroying the idol, everything gets put back to normal?" Kim asked, glancing over her shoulder at the idol again.

"Exactly. I get to go back to my time period, and flying car boy over there can stop eating meat cakes, and get back to devouring Bueno Nacho every day."

Kim raised an eyebrow at Green Lanterns statement, and studied him for another moment. Finally, with a small smile, she stepped aside and motioned towards the idol.

"I knew you'd come around." Lantern smiled.

"Well, you've got one of those faces a girl can trust." Kim said knowingly.

Lantern nodded and formed his construct hammer. With one last glance at his younger self and Rufus, he lowered the construct onto the idol, smashing both parts into innumerable pieces.

With a loud pop and the crackle of lighting the temple began to shake as a portal appeared above them.

"Are we going to remember any of this?" Kim shouted above the noise, even as she began to float towards the portal.

"We didn't last time!" Lantern yelled in response.

"Wait, last time?" Kim yelled before she was sucked into the worm hole.

"Later on future dude!" Ron called as he went zipping by. Rufus also chirped a goodbye, accompanied by a wave.

Lantern smiled and waved. He then began to fly up to the portal, anxious to go home. Much to his surprise however, the portal collapsed, pushing him back to the ground. Just as GL hit the ground the portal completely vanished. The air crackled with electricity for a moment afterwards, but Green Lantern had gone nowhere.

"No." Lantern mumbled. "No, this isn't possible! I destroyed the idol, I fixed time!"

Lantern scrambled to his feet and looked to where he had smashed the idol. There was nothing on the ground except for dust. The only sign that he had even broken the idol was a large crack in the floor where the construct hammer had landed. Panicked, Lantern glanced up to the platform. There was nothing there either. A scan of the temple revealed Monkey Fist and Duff Killigan were gone as well.

"I don't understand." Lantern mumbled. "I should be home. With Courtney, and Kim. Not stuck in the past."

"What am I still doing here?" Lantern yelled out, the question bouncing off the walls of the temple.

"That's exactly what I would like to know kid."

Lantern turned around to face whoever had come into the temple. If it were someone looking for a fight, he seriously felt bad for him or her right now. What he saw was one of the very last people he expected to see.

Another Green Lantern floated at the entrance of the temple. He was clad in the uniform that Ron had been given when he first put his ring on. He had short brown hair, which was just starting to show signs of gray at his temples. The Green Lantern lowered himself to the ground and walked towards Ron. He carried himself with an authority that bordered on arrogance, but not so much that he didn't command respect.

"Hal Jordan?" Ron breathed, his eyes wide behind his mask.

-To be continued...

-GL-

Hey everyone. First off, let me apologize for the long delay. Life's been a little turned around the last few months (in a good way), so it's been hard to sit down and write. Second, it means a lot to me all the people that messaged, emailed, or left reviews wondering about the status of this story. It's nice to know this story has a following that's still interested after all this time. I know this chapter is a little short, and I'm pretty sure I promised this would conclude the time travel story arc, but I wanted to get something out there for you all. I've started on the next half of this, but I don't want to keep you waiting any longer. So I hope everyone enjoys, sorry it's short, thanks for sticking with me, and I'll try to be a little quicker next time. Take care

-R


End file.
